Duke Energy grant program aims to offset COVID expenses
Photo courtesy of Michelle Parrish
From left, Bob Young, Chair of the RC Chamber of Commerce, Michelle Parrish, Executive Director of United Way of Richmond County, and David McNeill, District Manager with Duke Energy, hold the $25,000 check Duke Energy awarded to the local United Way.
Richmond County small businesses can now apply for grants from the Duke Energy Foundation’s Hometown Revitalization program to reimburse them for costs related to the pandemic.
The United Way of Richmond County applied for the $25,000 grant with the help of the Richmond County Chamber of Commerce as a way to support local businesses. These funds will be distributed among at least 10 businesses with a maximum disbursement of $2,500 and a minimum of $500. Duke initially had $500,000 to split between 20 North Carolina communities but increased the total to $750,000 (a 50% increase) due to the “breadth and quality” of applicants, allowing them to give a boost instead to 30 communities, the company said in a press release.
Michelle Parrish, executive director of the United Way of Richmond County, said that grants can be awarded, for example, to reimburse those who had to make their business’s website more appealing in response to the more-online pandemic business environment. If a business spent $2,000 on this type of expense and were approved for a grant, they would receive $2,000 from Duke Energy.
Applications must be submitted by noon on Monday, Dec. 1, 2021 — no late applications will be accepted. Home businesses do not qualify, according to Parrish.
“A lot of small businesses I know have been impacted directly by this pandemic, whether it’s people just not being out and about shopping in person anymore, they’re doing more online shopping, so I think it was important for us to apply for this grant with the hopes to … receive the grant to be able to help anybody that we could possibly help,” Parrish said. “I felt like even though $25,000 isn’t a lot of money it could still help our small businesses here in our community.”
To apply, visit https://www.richmondcountychamber.com/ and click on the bubble labeled “Richmond County Duke Energy Revitalization Grant Application” and follow the instructions. Another bubble on this page explains the procedures for the grant. Or, you can visit http://unitedwayrichmondnc.net/ and click on the yellow box marked “form” under “Richmond County Duke Energy Hometown Revitalization Grant.”
For more information, Parrish can be contacted at michelleparrish@bellsouth.net or 910-997-2173.
“After the most challenging 18 months our small businesses have experienced, the Duke Energy Hometown Revitalization Grant program provides important relief for business owners bouncing back from the strain of the pandemic and looking to stabilize and grow their businesses into the next chapter,” Parrish said.
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Reach Gavin Stone at 910-817-2673 or gstone@www.yourdailyjournal.com.