CenterPoint Energy 2005 Annual Report Download - page 16

[this page top] Zan May, manager in Investor Relations, jumps out front to set the pace for
fellow CenterPoint Energy running team members.
[1 4 ] CENT ERPOINT E NERGY 2 0 05 AN N UA L R E PO R T
SETTING THE PACE
WHEN HURRICANE KATRINA FORCED THOUSANDS OF LOUISIANA
RESIDENTS TO FLEE TO HOUSTON, OUR EMPLOYEES STEPPED TO THE
FOREFRONT WITH ASSISTANCE.
IN THE COMMUNITY
CENTERPOINT ENERGY EMPLOYEES ARE WELL KNOWN FOR THEIR
WILLINGNESS TO ROLL UP THEIR SLEEVES TO PERFORM VOLUNTEER WORK
IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. In addition to posting nearly 100,000 hours of volunteer
service, employees raised $1.5 million for community charities. We gave generously to
organizations such as the United Way, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the
March of Dimes, Junior Achievement and the United Negro College Fund.
From Texas to Mississippi, from Louisiana to Minnesota and points in between, CenterPoint
Energy employees participated in events that included blood drives, charity walks, debris
clean-ups, parades and bicycle rides. We
donated 4,100 units of blood and blood
products, continuing our leadership in this
area. We played a key role in the set-up and
operation of Houston’s George R. Brown
Convention Center for Hurricane Katrina
evacuees, with more than 230 employees
contributing 8,500 hours of volunteer service.
Under our new Grant Incentives for Volunteer
Employees (GIVE) program, we awarded
$24,300 to organizations where employees
volunteered at least 40 hours for the year.
Our volunteer spirit did not go unnoticed: In Houston, we received
the Corporate Partner of the Year Award from the Ensemble Theatre;
the Mayor’s Proud Partner Award for the Edgewood Elementary
Beautification Project; the Vietnamese Cultural and Science
Association Corporate Citizen Award; and the Dragon Boat Regatta,
First Place, Energy Industry Award. We also received a National Blood
donor award.
Some of the larger events in which our employees participated were
the CenterPoint Energy Torchlight Parade in Minneapolis; Prairie
Restoration in Burnsville, Minn., to restore indigenous plants, grasses
and wildflowers to the Minnesota River Valley; Habitat for Humanity,
where we helped build several homes; the CenterPoint Energy Mudbug
Festival in Shreveport, La.; the Brantley Farm Dove Hunt fundraiser for
Children’s Hospital in Arkansas; the Camp Aldersgate project where
Little Rock employees cleared land to provide a camp experience
for handicapped children; and the Power Tools for Nonprofits
Conference in Houston, where each year we bring together hundreds
of representatives from community groups to learn from experts how
to enhance the effectiveness of their organizations.