Charitable Giving & Volunteerism

In the past year, APS employees, friends and families have walked, climbed, bowled and cleaned all in the name of charity. They've been waiters and elves as well as philanthropists assisting their fellow humans, donating nearly 150,000 volunteer hours in 2005.

The mission of the APS Volunteer Program is to encourage, support and recognize the volunteer activities and community service efforts of its employees and retirees who regularly and unselfishly contribute their time, talents, hearts and hands in an effort to make our communities stronger and help improve the lives and well-being of their customers and neighbors. It also seeks - through leadership, living examples, partnerships and promotions - to inspire, instruct and encourage other companies and individuals to join APS in helping those in need and supporting their communities non-profit, civic and service organizations.

The APS Volunteer Program is active in virtually every community in which APS has a presence. This includes more than 200 cities and towns in Arizona, served by APS and where the majority of APS' approximately 6,000 employees live and work, plus the area near Four Corners, New Mexico, where APS is a major employer and operator of one of the nation's largest and cleanest-burning coal-fired power plants.

Below, we've included a list of only a handful of the many projects and hours invested by APS volunteers. In many instances, these charitable projects span more than a decade, bringing annual support to non-profits. Frequently, APS volunteers are leaders setting the course for these events. Among the most notable are the chambers of commerce, United Way, the Boys and Girls Club and the Fiesta Bowl. But the list, which isn't comprehensive, doesn't begin to describe the hard work of our volunteers:

• American Diabetes Association - APS volunteers have been instrumental in the planning and implementation of the ADA's key fundraising events - America's Walk for Diabetes, Tour de Cure and Team Diabetes. Jack Davis, APS president and CEO, served as Walk chairman for two years, including 2005, and other APS employees served on planning committees. In those two years, Team APS was one of the top fundraisers, contributing more than $50,000 in donations and in-kind services.
• The Salvation Army - volunteers provided donated items, coordinated landscaping and maintenance of facilities, supported holiday activities such as the Christmas Angel project and provided bell ringers. In the fall of 2005, APS teamed up with the Arizona Cardinals and renovated the Salvation Army's recreation field. APS employees also serve on the board.
• American Heart Association's Heart Walk - Last year more than 80 Team APS members participated in the Walk in Tempe collecting nearly $13,000. These funds supported research, education and community outreach by the AHA.
• Back-to-School Clothing Drive Association - APS volunteers impacted the lives of more than 5,000 low-income children through this organization by distributing clothes, shoes and a backpack filled with personal hygiene items. APS has participated for more than 10 years.
• Junior Achievement - APS volunteers are directly involved in the education process by being in the classroom and teaching students about topics such as entrepreneurship, personal finance, career exploration and economics. Volunteers also participated in the Hula Bowl, an annual bowl-a-thon, in which APS employees raised $3,907 plus an additional $675 in company-paid registration fees to send 250 Arizona children to Junior Achievement, a non-profit economic education program.
• Black Heritage Celebration - Drawing a crowd of more than 2,000 visitors, APS volunteers supported this event which funds two $1,000 scholarships for Phoenix-area students raising nearly $8,000 last year. BHC began in 1999.
• Climb to Conquer Cancer - Ten APS teams of 489 APS employees, friends and family members participated in this 5.5-mile trek at Phoenix's South Mountain Park. Through this event, participants raised more than $40,000 for the American Cancer Society. APS has participated for more than 20 years.
• Disaster Relief Efforts - APS employees raised $54,000 for Asia's tsunami survivors through organizations like the Red Cross, UNICEF and Habitat for Humanity. Later in the year, employees volunteered and raised more than $161,000 for Hurricane Katrina victims.
• Day for Downtown - APS volunteers joined a citywide effort to beautify downtown Phoenix producing 2,200 community service hours to 11 non-profit organizations and schools. APS employees did yard work and housecleaning at Home Base Youth Services, a non-profit agency for at-risk and homeless youth.
• Holiday Food Drive - APS employees and retirees collected more than $15,000 and 4,400 cans of food for St. Mary's/Westside Food Bank Alliance. Employees' generous donations helped provide more than 75,439 meals to families in need.
• Pappas Fall Festival - Forty APS volunteers brightened the lives of 850 homeless children in grades K-6 attending Thomas J. Pappas School by stuffing goodie bags, decorating and putting on a festival.
• Santa Letters - More than 100 APS volunteers, also known as Santa's elves, answered more than 1,200 letters in December to Kris Kringle from Arizona boys and girls of all ages.
• St. Mary's/Westside Food Bank Steak Fry - Last year, 90 APS employees, friends and family raised $23,000 for this annual event. Funds benefited more than 400 charities across the state, which receive food from the Westside Food Bank. APS volunteers have worked the steak fry for more than 15 years.

APS Volunteer Matching Gifts Program

One only need look at projects like the APS Volunteer Matching Gifts program as a benchmark of the company's spirit of giving.

The APS Volunteer Matching Gifts program encourages and recognizes the generosity of employees, retirees and Company board members who volunteer time and talent to educational, cultural, environmental, health and human services and community development organizations dedicated to enhancing our quality of life. 

APS provides a grant of $125 to any single organization receiving a minimum of 25 volunteer hours. Volunteers can request matching gifts for up to five different organizations per year.

Last year, the Matching Gifts program yielded more than $29,000 for non-profit organizations in addition to the hundreds of volunteer hours put in by employees. The program provides $125 grants to qualified non-profit agencies getting at least 25 volunteer hours from APS employees. It also matches any financial gift from an employee to a qualified non-profit organization by providing 50 cents to every employee dollar, up to $1,000.

Charitable Giving

Through Corporate Giving, APS continues to be the leading Arizona corporate citizen. We support non-profit organizations with a 501(c)(3) Internal Revenue Service tax‑exempt status through cash and/or in kind services. We support our communities in five strategic areas: health and human services, community development, education, arts and culture and the environment.

APS Corporate Giving does not fund individual requests, charter or private schools, religious, political, fraternal, legislative or lobbying efforts or organizations, travel‑related or hotel expenses, private or family foundations, private non-profit organizations, salaries and/or debt reduction. APS prefers to give directly to recipient organizations/agencies. 

APS Employees SHARE with low-income customers

The Service to Help Arizonans with Relief on Energy (SHARE) program is an emergency fund managed by the Salvation Army which is designed to help those who face financial hardships such as unemployment, a death in the family or large medical expenses, and who have exhausted other potential sources of assistance. APS employees have participated voluntarily in Project SHARE for a number of years. In 2005, more than 1,000 APS employees made a donation to SHARE through payroll deduction, for a total of $29,600. APS also gives its customers the opportunity to participate in SHARE through their electric bills.