May 8, 2025 | Bill Help, Customer Service
With many household costs on the rise, we want to do everything possible to help manage energy costs and keep monthly bills as predictable and reasonable as possible.
Because of this, the PPL Foundation has doubled our annual donation to the Good Neighbor Energy Fund from $200,000 to $400,000 in 2025.
What is the Good Neighbor Energy Fund?
The Good Neighbor Energy Fund, administered by the Lehigh Valley Community Foundation, is designed to address the growing energy cost burdens faced by our customers. The funds are distributed to households through community-based organizations across PPL Electric Utilities’ service territory. Households earning up to 300% of the federal poverty level may qualify for assistance up to $1,000.
“We recognize that rising costs of goods and services create challenges for many families and individuals, and we’re pleased to be able to provide this additional support to help them navigate financial hardships,” said Christine Martin, president of PPL Electric Utilities and an officer of the PPL Foundation. “By empowering nonprofits already on the ground with the resources they need, we’re able to get help to families faster. This program underscores the importance of partnership in addressing community challenges.”
How can I apply?
If you are interested in assistance, you can contact one of the 14 following energy fund recipients directly:
- 4 Girls on a Mission – Electric utility assistance: Visit website
- Central Susquehanna Opportunities, Inc. – CSO utility assistance: Visit website
- Family Promise of Berks County, Inc. – Rent and utility assistance: Visit website
- Family Promise of the Poconos, Inc. – Project Lights On: Visit website
- Lehigh Conference of Churches – Utility assistance at Lehigh Conference of Churches: Visit website
- New Bethany – New Bethany’s housing advocacy & assistance: Visit website
- Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley – Promise utility assistance program: Visit website
- Raising the House – Family assistance program: Visit website
- Salvation Army of East Stroudsburg – Salvation Army East Stroudsburg Corps utility assistance program serving Monroe County: Visit website
- The Open Link – Upper Perkiomen Valley utility assistance: Visit website
- Third Street Alliance for Women & Children – Third Street Alliance utility assistance program: Visit website
- Tri County Community Action – Powering stability: Expanding utility support for families in need: Visit website
- Turning Point of Lehigh Valley, Inc. – Utility assistance for domestic abuse survivors: Visit website
- Valley Youth House – Utility assistance for formerly homeless youth and families in rapid re-housing programs: Visit website
We also offer a variety of other programs and tools to help reduce energy usage and manage bills. Visit pplelectric.com/SeasonalSavings to find out which program is right for you.
Apr 16, 2025 | Community Involvement
We believe that education is vital for vibrant communities. That’s why we donate our time, energy and our know-how to help students and teachers in our neighborhoods. Through PPL Foundation grants, we are helping prepare today’s students become tomorrow’s leaders.
Community Services for Children (CSC) is a recipient of an Education Improvement Tax Credit grant. The organization is using this grant to help support its two “Innovation Labs” at its downtown Allentown location.
The labs provide a number of hands-on STEM learning tools and programs to help build thinking and collaboration skills for preschool-aged children in Allentown.
“CSC is about connecting families to the resources that they need,” said Deidra Vachier, CEO and president of CSC. “Many of the children that we serve, because they are some of our most vulnerable children have never had a preschool experience.”
Due in part to the opportunities provided by the labs, CSC says that kids’ test scores at the downtown Allentown location have been higher than other locations in the region.
“It supports everything that the PPL Foundation supports,” said Jane George, manager of government affairs and special projects at PPL Electric Utilities. “[The students] were engaged, they wanted to learn, and this is becoming their foundation for future learning.”
View the video below to learn more about the PPL Foundation, CSC and how these Innovation Labs are helping these young students learn vital educational skills.
Apr 9, 2025 | Community Involvement
Through the PPL Foundation’s Empowering Communities grants, we support local programs focused on education, environmental stewardship, economic development and/or workforce development. We believe that serving our communities means much more than just delivering safe and reliable electricity.
UPMC in North Central Pa. and Susquehanna Health Foundation are recent recipients of an Empowering Communities grant. The health system’s foundation is using this grant to support its nursing co-op program. The co-op graduated 11 local high schoolers on April 4 after 15 weeks of hands-on, real-world experience inside of area UPMC locations. The students come from Loyalsock, Williamsport, South Williamsport and Hughesville high schools.
We believe in supporting education and setting up students for long-term success in their careers. That’s why we have provided grants to Susquehanna Health Foundation since 2023.
“These students are getting the full experience,” said Alison Gower, program director for the co-op at UPMC Williamsport. “They work alongside the nurses and nurse aids, and work with patients on a personal level to help give them the care that they need.”
The student nurses rotate through several departments during the program, including the medical-surgical unit, emergency department, The Birthplace, Intensive Care Unit, rehabilitation, pediatrics, Operating Room and a unit of the students’ choice that they are most interested in learning more about. 
“This is something that most students don’t get to do when they’re in high school. It’s been an incredible experience,” said Abigail Lorson, a senior at South Williamsport High School. “I’ve learned that this job is about devoting yourself to the patients and making them feel as comfortable as they can be. You can’t learn this level of care in a book.”
“It’s really nice to have a program like this because it has given me a chance to try out a role before committing my career to it,” added fellow South Williamsport senior Alizabeth Schuler.”
The co-op is a paid program that gives not only hands-on experience, but a boost to the start of students’ college careers. And for those who do not pursue higher education, there are opportunities to work at UPMC after the program. Of the 44 students who have graduated from the program in the last five co-ops, 14 have been hired into care attendant positions.
“When I first started the co-op, I didn’t know where within the hospital I wanted to go,” said Michael Yoas, another senior at South Williamsport. “This showed me the areas that I liked and enjoyed, and I want to someday become a registered nurse.”
While providing care to the patients is the top priority of this co-op, it is providing clarity to the students and affirming that this career path is right for them.
“It has been everything I imagined and more; this experience clarified for me that this is what I want to do with my life,” Lorson said.
“We really appreciate our partnership with Susquehanna Health Foundation and UPMC,” said Jonah Howe, regional affairs director at PPL Electric Utilities. “This type of opportunity is so crucial to the future of healthcare and taking care of our communities, and this level of program is a perfect fit for an Empowering Communities grant.”
The latest batch of co-op students have now officially moved on from the program, but two more semesters of students will join the team next school year, beginning in the fall.
“Over the years, the students have all been very responsible and hardworking, and it’s so great to see their excitement,” Gower said. “We’re grateful for the support we’ve received from PPL, and we look forward to growing this program and educating these students.”
Apr 1, 2025 | Community Involvement
We enjoy giving back to our communities and neighbors in powerful ways, not because it looks good on paper, but because it is who we are. Aside from the warmth and liveliness of spring, it’s why we love April, one of the busiest months on our calendar.
The month of April will be busy once again in 2025, as we continue our 100-year commitment to serving eastern and central Pennsylvania. Here’s how we’ll be empowering our communities this month:
- 🌎 Caring for our environment: April is Earth Month, and Earth Day is celebrated on April 22. We will be taking part in a number of volunteer activities during the week of Earth Day, planting trees and sprucing up local parks in Harrisburg, Williamsport, Allentown, Bethlehem, Hazleton and Scranton.
- But before we head out for our Earth Day festivities, we’ll be in East Greenville on April 12 to clean up the Perkiomen Stream at the Kistler Bitting YMCA Park. We also are holding a family volunteer day event at the Wildlands Conservancy on April 12, where our employees will get to bring their families along to help beautify the conservancy’s nature preserves.
- 👨🏫 Supporting education: We know today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders, so we support education year-round. April is a great example of what we do to aid curriculums throughout our service territory.
- On April 14, we will be hosting 75 students from the Allentown School District for an up-close look at careers in the energy industry. Students will learn about linework, cybersecurity, customer service, environmental management and more. Later in the month, we will also be hosting students from SUN Area Technical Institute for a tour of one of our service centers and to learn more about operations at PPL Electric Utilities.
- 💕 Giving and grants: Our grant programs help organizations throughout the 29 counties we serve inspire students and children, foster inclusion, encourage environmental stewardship and more. While our PPL Foundation team gets ready to notify this year’s recipients of Powering Equity Grants in May, we’re checking in with a pair of organizations that have already received funding from the PPL Foundation
- Another successful semester of the Student Career Exploration Co-Op Program is wrapping up at UPMC, where local high school students receive weekly hands-on nursing experience through the Susquehanna Health Foundation. The student-nurses will talk about all they’ve been able to learn through the program as they explore nursing as a career. Supporting STEM education is also something we strongly believe in. That’s why we’re excited to visit with our friends at Community Services for Children (CSC) in Allentown and watch their young students play and learn in CSC’s Innovation Lab. Funded in part by a PPL Foundation grant, the lab offers several hands-on learning activities.
Our employees give their time and money year-round to help nonprofit organizations, support sustainable communities and empower students and educators. We look forward to every opportunity to assist our neighborhoods, making April an especially exciting time. As spring begins to take over Pennsylvania, we look forward to springing into action throughout our communities!
Nov 11, 2024 | Community Involvement, Diversity/Equity/Inclusion
Every Veterans Day, we honor all who have served in the military. Veterans at PPL Electric Utilities can join our PPLVets business resource group, which holds veteran-led meetings and events throughout the year. Through the PPL Foundation, we’re also proud to support organizations throughout our 29-county service territory that assist veterans.
The I’M ABLE Foundation is one of these organizations. The foundation is based in Wyomissing and is a recent recipient of a Powering Equity grant. I’M ABLE builds on its mission to remove obstacles for people with challenges, providing them with access to programs and equipment tailored to their needs.
In addition to providing free adaptive and inclusive group fitness programs for children, I’M ABLE also provides free fitness and mentorship opportunities for veterans though its Operation Lead from the Front program.
“The I’M ABLE Foundation is a place where people can come and get active – people of all abilities,” said Brian Sutherland, director of development for the I’M ABLE Foundation.
The foundation hosts classes at its gym twice a week and also takes part in events on select weekends. While the childrens’ and veterans’ fitness classes bring in different audiences, veterans have the opportunity to take part in mentoring and helping children in the foundation’s I’M FIT classes.
Jason Kish is a military veteran who has become a mentor for two children in the I’M FIT class.
“It just makes my life more enriched, just to get away from my normal day-to-day routine,” Kish said. “This is something that’s just hard to describe – how rewarding it is.”
A photo of Kish (left) and Josh (right) during one of the program’s I’M FIT classes.
Since I’M ABLE began hosting classes, attendance has jumped from an average of five participants to 40 per class. Sutherland says that this jump is thanks to donors like the PPL Foundation that make this programming free.
“You guys giving back to the community and making this possible for people of all abilities – it makes a difference,” he said. “All these kids can come together and just be celebrated for who they are and what they can do.”
“The work that they are doing to advance inclusivity in our community is so important,” said Kelly Palmer, PPL Electric Utilities regional affairs director. “It’s really meeting a community need, and it’s exactly the type of program we would want to fund through the Powering Equity grant. We are proud to support the I’M ABLE Foundation, and we are proud to support our veterans.”
