BOSTON -- Citizens Energy Corporation Chairman and President Joseph P. Kennedy II recognized the generosity of corporate community partners today in coordination with a home heating oil delivery to a single, 82-year-old Roxbury resident struggling to keep up with the rising cost of oil. Queenie Williamson of Roxbury is just one of the thousands of Massachusetts residents that will benefit from the donations these partners have made to support the Citizens Energy Oil Heat Fund.
The donations come at a crucial time, when many people in need have already exhausted other forms of heating assistance and find themselves with nowhere else to turn. State Street Foundation, Inc., Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, TJX Companies, John Hancock, Gillette, National Grid, Themo Fischer Sci., MLS Property, Cognos Corporation, Perini, Staples, Citizens Bank and EMC Corporation have all committed to donations totaling around $800,000.
“Record energy prices and rising consumer prices are creating a perfect storm for the poor and elderly this Winter,” said Joseph P. Kennedy II, Chairman and President of Citizens Energy Corporation. “The leadership and generosity of good corporate citizens will help ensure that no one in Massachusetts is left out in the cold.”
Citizens Energy Works with the Massachusetts Community Action Program (MASSCAP), a local 501(c)(3) non-profit, to accept and administer donations to the Oil Heat Fund. These funds help provide heating assistance to some of the most vulnerable families and individuals in Massachusetts. Last year, $300,000 in Oil Heat Fund donations was distributed through Massachusetts’ Community Action Agencies to help more than 1,000 households in the Commonwealth that had exhausted their federal energy assistance benefits.
People in need of heating assistance this winter should contact their local Community Action Agency. A list of these agencies can be found on the MASSCAP Website (www.masscap.org). Those who have not already applied for federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funds are encouraged to do so. Those who have already received but exhausted their LIHEAP funds should check back with their Community Action Agency to see if additional funds from the Oil Heat Fund may be available to assist them.
Companies and individuals interested in donating to the Citizens Energy Oil Heat Fund may send a cheek payable to the Citizens Energy Oil Heat Fund to MASSCAP, Attention: Joe Diamond, at 105 Chauncey Street, Boston, MA 02111. Upon receipt of the donation, MASSCAP will send an acknowledgement and a copy of its tax-exemption letter. Funds donated to MASSCAP for this program go directly to provide heating assistance to qualified Massachusetts households.