News Releases

(Lexington, Ky.) – As National Preparedness Month rounds toward its close, Kentucky Utilities Company is joining with the Fayette County Sheriff’s Office and other community leaders, encouraging neighborhood safety by installing energy-efficient bulbs in porch lights on homes throughout the community. KU employees are participating in the volunteer effort for the utility’s 14th annual Day of Caring, which takes place Tuesday, Sept.25. 

Day of Caring is part of KU’s and its sister utility, Louisville Gas and Electric Company’s, annual employee-giving campaign called Power of One, which brings together monetary giving and volunteer work.

In Lexington, more than two dozen KU employee volunteers will team with sheriff’s deputies to visit targeted homes and install LED bulbs, donated by the utility, in porch lights of residents whose homes are in need of greater night time security. The efforts are part of a larger initiative by the sheriff’s office to help foster safer neighborhoods by ensuring homes are well lit.

“We’re extremely thankful to partner with KU for this effort,” said Fayette County Sheriff Kathy Witt. “Effective lighting is critically important as a deterrent to crime, and this is part of our overall mission to protect life and property here in Fayette County.” 

“Just as safety is a top priority throughout our business, we want to help ensure it’s a top priority for families in across the communities we serve,” said Lonnie Bellar, LG&E and KU Chief Operating Officer and co-chair of the 2018 Power of One campaign. “Getting out in our neighborhoods and participating in efforts like this that can really make a difference for residents is important to our employees and a big part of our company culture.”

In addition to the Day of Caring event in Lexington, LG&E and KU is also holding a Day of Caring event in Louisville. More than 50 of the company’s employees volunteer there are joining with the Red Cross to participate in its Sound the Alarm program. A nationwide initiative, Sound the Alarm works to reduce the number of deaths and injuries from home fires. Volunteers participating will install working smoke alarms, teach residents how to prepare for home fires and other disasters, and provide a white board used to help them map out a 2-minute Home Fire Escape plan. 

In 2017, LG&E and KU’s Power of One Campaign raised more than $2 million thanks to voluntary contributions from employees and additional support from the LG&E and KU Foundation. Nearly 70 percent of LG&E and KU employees participate in the  campaign through recurrent payroll deductions — a participation rate that is more than twice the national average for employee payroll donation in charitable giving.

Visit lge-ku.com to find out more about the company’s community outreach efforts.