Blue Ridge Energy Foundation Grants Awarded in Ashe and Wilkes Counties

Grants awarded by the Blue Ridge Energy Members Foundation will support local community projects focused on economic and community development, health and wellness, education and youth programs, and other initiatives that enhance quality of life throughout our communities.

In Ashe and Wilkes Counties, citizens will benefit from seven grants worth $26,500 awarded recently for the 2026 grant cycle.

The grants are examples of why Blue Ridge Energy established the Members Foundation in 2007 to support the work of community organizations providing services vital to the quality of life for the cooperative’s members. Since then, the Foundation has awarded over $2.1 million in community grants.

Local Ashe and Wilkesboro County agencies receiving grant awards include:

• Ashe County Agriculture Foundation - a $2,500 grant will be used to support the Ashe Heritage Festival, a community event that celebrates and promotes the region’s agricultural heritage through education, outreach, and public engagement.
• Ashe County Rescue Squad - a $7,000 grant will be used to replace a 30-year-old Hydraulic Spreader (Jaws of Life) that is mandatory for any first out rescue apparatus.
• Blizzard Bundles of the High Country- a $1,000 grant will be used to support the purchase and distribution of 66 Blizzard Bundles—winter emergency kits containing cold-weather essentials such as gloves, hats, scarves, and socks—for low-income seniors, individuals with disabilities, and vulnerable families
• Riverview Community Center- a $5,000 grant will be used to support replacement of four large windows above the center’s gymnasium entrance.
• Mountain True- a $3,000 grant will be used to fund to support weekly water quality monitoring on the Watauga and New Rivers through the Swim Guide program, as well as disaster preparedness workshops that provide residents with emergency planning education, preparedness supplies, and resources to strengthen readiness for future disasters. 
• Wilkes Community Partnership for Children- a $3,000 grant will be used to support WCPC’s Calm Through the Crying program, an evidence-based infant abuse prevention class that teaches parents and caregivers about normal infant crying, soothing techniques, and strategies to prevent shaken baby syndrome.
• Wilkes Public Health Dental Clinic, Wilkes Dental Consortium, Inc.- a $5,000 grant will be used to support dental treatment and oral health supplies for underserved children and adults in the Blue Ridge Energy service area who lack the financial means to access care.

A grand total of $120,000 was awarded to 27 organizations across the Blue Ridge Energy service area for the 2026 grant cycle. In 2026, the Foundation also provided crisis energy bill assistance to over 760 Blue Ridge Energy members and customers who needed emergency help paying their electric and fuel bills.

Funding for Foundation grants and crisis assistance comes from members participating in Blue Ridge Energy’s Operation Round Up^® and Operation Round Up Plus^® programs and an annual contribution from profits of the cooperative’s subsidiaries, Blue Ridge Energy, LLC, and RidgeLink, LLC. Over 23,500 members are either rounding up their monthly electric bill with Operation Round Up or adding a dollar or more with Operation Round Up Plus. Members also contribute by donating some or all of their annual capital credits.

Anyone with questions about the Foundation or agencies interested in applying for grants may contact Tasha Rountree, director of community relations and economic development, at 828-759-8994 or trountree@blueridgeenergy.com.

Blue Ridge Energy is a member-owned electric cooperative serving some 80,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, and Alleghany counties and parts of Wilkes, Avery, and Alexander counties. It also includes a propane heating fuels subsidiary and a business-to-business telecommunications subsidiary. Learn more at www.BlueRidgeEnergy.com.

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