Local Utility Companies Recognized by their Community
Two incredible small companies crossed the stage to receive awards from their local community recently. These great community-based companies were either voted for by a panel of judges consisting of previous years winners or by members of the community.
What is unusual about this? They are both utility companies! It isn’t every day that you hear someone boasting about how much they love their electricity provider.
These two companies are Get Energy of Fort McMurray and Camrose Energy of Camrose. Both are owned by local residents who strive to give back and be active in their community. It seems their respective communities have noticed their efforts!
Small Business Rewarded for Excellences
Camrose is a smaller tightknit city of 18,069 people. The Camrose Chamber of Commerce recently held its Business Excellence Awards, where a community member can nominate a local business for one of the seven available awards.Camrose Energy, owned and operated by Denise Hawkins and her husband Russell, was nominated and named the winner of the Small Business of the Year award, in which a judging panel, consisting of previous winners, voted.
“To be recognized for the community contribution that Camrose Energy does is quite humbling,” said Denise. “We are so thankful for our customers and the support that they have provided over the years. It is their dedication and connection to keeping things local that we owe so much to.”
Camrose Energy stared seven years ago after Russel was researching everything solar panels and electricity for his contracting job. That is when he came across the opportunity of becoming an Energy Marketer through Utility Network and Partners.
“We decided if we did not proceed with the opportunity it would be one of those regrets that we looked back on,” said Denise thinking back after their first meeting to become an Energy Marketer. They took the plunge and never looked back!
According to Denise, Camrose Energy has gotten to this point over the last seven years largely through connecting with the community.
“We work to take the anonymity and confusion out of an otherwise faceless, nameless and impersonal industry. People want a human connection. It is more about connecting through conversation in person and over the phone.”
Their dedication to their community is built directly into the business model. Through its Community Partner Program, Camrose Energy customers can choose which supported the organization they want to donate to, and Camrose Energy donates 10% of the profits made through the sale of electricity and gas to them. Some organizations in the Community Partner Program include Habitat for Humanity Camrose, The Drumheller & District Humane Society, The Open Door, and more.
The community connections built are strengthened by small but meaningful acts. One such example is when the yearly Midnight Madness event takes place in the town of Camrose. This event is where most retail shops in the town are open until midnight, which can be a stressful day for business owners to prepare for.
“I want to do my part in making their busy night a bit more manageable,” said Denise. “So, at about 4:30 pm, before things really get busy, I deliver pizza to them. This has happened the past five years and it is my way of showing my thanks and appreciation to them for supporting me. I want to help make their day just a bit more manageable.”
Camrose Energy likes to have fun too. Case in point being the rather humorous game of “snow golf” that they are the title sponsor for each year. All the proceeds of this event go to Habitat for Humanity.“Teams of four drive around Camrose in their car to the 18 sponsored holes. The hole is marked by a flag and hula hoop. Your golf ball is a stress ball,” said Denise. “We have had a dice to roll to decide what ‘golf club’ you get to use. We have had crutches, badminton rackets, hockey sticks and even the dreaded 2X4. Costumes are a definite must!”
Another way they have helped Habitat for Humanity is by installing solar panels on the ReStore which supports 60% of the Restore annual usage for electricity. This leaves a larger margin of the profits from the store to go to supporting the main initiatives behind Habitat for Humanity, helping families obtain strength, stability and self-reliance.
“My largest take away from being in business these past 7 years is that it is all about your relationship with your customer,” says Denise.
She has built her business from the ground up with the help of her united community. As her business has grown, so has her ability to support her local community in any way she can.
Recognizing Sustainable Solutions
Get Energy, owned by Malcolm and Jenelle Setter, has been operating in Fort McMurray for five years. In that time, they have established themselves as strong community members, taking part in community events and donating to a number of charities in the Wood Buffalo area. They also continually strive to provide excellent customer service experience for their customers.“We have always done our best to go over and above for our clients and those we work with,” said Jenelle. “One of our company’s core values is appreciation. We want every customer, team member, contractor, and colleague to feel that they are not just a number.”
Additionally, Get Energy is an avid advocate for the environment and sustainability, offering its customers the ability to green their electricity usage through the purchase of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and by supporting solar micro-generators in Alberta.
It was because of these efforts that Get Energy was nominated for and named the winner of this year's Fort McMurray Chamber of Commerce Business Award for Environment and Sustainability.
“To us, this award represents Get Energy’s hard work and community involvement over the past five years,” said Jenelle. “Receiving the Environmental & Sustainability award has been so encouraging as we move in the right direction toward more environmentally friendly practices, renewable energy efforts, and sustainability projects.”
In order to win this award, Get Energy needed to have demonstrated outstanding leadership in economic, social, charitable, or environmental activities as well as show a focus on a mandate aligned with ongoing contributions to the environment and sustainability.
In addition to this criterion, Get Energy was required to have demonstrated excellence in their field and have demonstrated leadership qualities in enhancing entrepreneurship for women.
One of the major contributors to Get Energy taking home this award was the introduction of its newest program, the Solar Club, which was launched in March. The Solar Club was designed specifically to help solar micro-generators receive the shortest payback period on their solar array, with the goal of encouraging more people to install solar. Members of the club receive 2% cashback from all of the electricity they import from the grid, and Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) equal to 30% of their electricity consumption.
“To us, sustainability means providing a product that is sustainable for the long term,” said Jenelle. “This means encouraging solar and other renewable types of installations to support the transition to a greener grid.”
“This also means that within our community, we are giving back to support sustainability within the community. We want to ensure we are supporting local charities and local businesses.”
That volunteerism and charitability are at the core of Get Energy. As part of their charitability, in 2018 Get Energy ran a contest called the 12 weeks of Christmas giveaway.
Members of the Fort McMurray community are strong supporters of this company and it is because of the dedication of this neighbourly couple.
“Community is everything to us! One of our core values is a community, and we strive to be involved as much as possible,” said Jenelle. “We want our customers to feel they are part of our community, as much as we are a part of theirs.”
You only need to look as far as their social media to see local community members commenting and asking Jenelle and Malcolm questions about their bills, which are always answered back with honesty and compassion. They have trusted members of the community and they return that trust with devoted hard work to make Fort McMurray a better place.
Helping Local Businesses Help More
Both Camrose Energy and Get Energy support their local community but they are only able to do it because of the support of their loyal customers. Both of these companies can service all of Alberta and the sign-up process is quick and easy. If you switch, you won’t notice a change in service but you can know that every month your bill will be going back into your local community.
If you are in Camrose or the surrounding area, then consider signing up your services with Camrose Energy by clicking this link.
If you are in Fort McMurray or the surrounding area, then consider signing up your services with Get Energy by clicking this link.
If you are not from either of those areas, don’t worry! There are 20 Energy Marketers in Alberta. Click this link to find one near to you or one that supports a cause close to your heart