Operation Round Up®

OPERATION ROUND UP, the program initiated by Palmetto Electric Cooperative in November 1989, recently received a generous 20th anniversary gift.

	Co-op CEO G. Thomas Upshaw presents a Bright Ideas grant to principal Donna Kinard in 2004. Donations to Operation Round Up, a nationally renowned program, support Bright Ideas as well as local people in need.

The co-op’s four chapters of WIRE (Women Involved in Rural Electrification) donated a $1,000 check and about $900 in other gifts to Palmetto Electric Trust during recent luncheons. Upshaw, who spoke at the New River/Hilton Head Island/Ridgeland chapter’s luncheon, praised the community outreach group. “This is an example of how co-op programs like WIRE and Operation Round Up make a real difference in the lives of local people,” he said.

Operation Round Up, he noted, has been adopted by more than 260 other electric co-ops nationwide. Palmetto members make a huge difference when they agree to have their bill rounded up, Upshaw noted.

“More than 80 percent of our members currently participate. Their generosity allows us to share approximately $300,000 in aid each year with deserving local folks.”

Palmetto Electric Trust, an independent board of community volunteers, administers the collected funds. Grants go to individuals with emergency needs and, for several years, local educators with Bright Ideas to inspire local students.

Meeting local needs

More than two decades, Upshaw noted, Operation Round Up grants have helped projects around Palmetto Electric’s three-county service area, including a heliport and portable X-ray unit for the Hampton County hospital, a 911 system in Jasper County plus start-up funds for Second Helpings in Beaufort County.

The support of WIRE, whose members hold regular fund-raisers to aid local causes, comes as the Operation Round Up trust board is stepping up efforts to help local people, according to Palmetto Electric Trust’s chairman.

Adjusting to the times

L.G. Smith, trust chairman, says a recent uptick in individual aid requests prompted the board to reassess grant allocation priorities. Individual requests have grown steadily due to a weakened economy and continued job losses, he said. It’s the second time in Operation Round Up’s history such an adjustment has been made, Smith noted; the first was after 9/11.

He hopes funding for organizations traditionally supported, such as Meals on Wheels, can resume. “We’re just trying to get the individuals taken care of right now,” he said. Meals on Wheels in Bluffton has received more than $45,000 in grants over 20 years.

One initiative the trust will continue to fund is Bright Ideas, where K–12 teachers in the service area can apply for grants for innovative classroom projects. “Bright Ideas helps teachers as individuals, too, because they used to have to fund a lot of class projects themselves,” he says. “Personally, I don’t think there could be any better program.”