Project Warmth Committee Boosts Emergency Fuel Fund to Ensure Families Stay Warm and Safe This Winter
February 3, 2020 (Deer Park, NY) – The Long Island region has already experienced a number of cold days and to combat the increased home energy costs during these months, United Way of Long Island’s Project Warmth Fuel Fund Committee - a group of key representatives from the energy sector across Long Island - is at the forefront of helping to warm the homes and hearts of neighbors in temporary financial distress.Due to the collective efforts of individuals and corporations, United Way of Long Island is able to impact nearly 1,000 families annually in need of emergency heating assistance. Project Warmth Committee members have been especially generous, this includes a recent $5,000 contribution from the Oil Heat Institute of Long Island. Continued support is vital to ensure that the program is sustained throughout the full winter season.
As Long Island’s only island-wide non-governmental emergency heating fund, United Way’s Project Warmth is now open and available as a safety net for individuals and families who are facing energy insecurity. Assistance with an oil delivery or heat-related utility bill means people have room in their budgets to cover essentials like food or medication.
Oil Heat Institute of Long Island continues to support efforts that make certain all Long Islanders have affordable access to vital resources that keep their homes warm, allowing residents to focus on living, and not merely surviving. “As a representative of the oil industry and its public consumers, we want to ensure that programs like Project Warmth continue to exist. Without this assistance, hundreds of families across Long Island are at risk of living in dangerously low temperatures,” said Rocco Lacertosa, Chief Executive Officer of Oil Heat Institute of Long Island.
“Many working families make financial trade-offs during the winter months in order to make ends meet. It is because of our dedicated supporters, like Oil Heat Institute of Long Island, that United Way is able to ensure that Long Islanders’ homes remain heated in a safe manner,” said Theresa A. Regnante, President & CEO of United Way of Long Island.
Project Warmth will be offered throughout the winter to assist families not eligible for emergency HEAP or who have utilized that benefit. For assistance from Project Warmth, contact United Way's 211 helpline by dialing 2-1-1, or outside of Nassau and Suffolk counties 1-888-774-7633, 7 days a week 9:00am – 5:00pm, or visit 211longisland.org or unitedwayli.org/projectwarmth.
To support Project Warmth, please make a contribution on United Way of Long Island’s website at unitedwayli.org/projectwarmth.
Since its inception in 1994, Project Warmth has provided more than $12 million in emergency funding to more than 95,000 children and adults. Eligible applicants include residents who are experiencing a heating emergency, have a low or empty oil tank, have received a disconnection notice, and can demonstrate financial hardship. This is especially critical for seniors, veterans, families with young children and people with disabilities.
Photo Caption: Craig Fligstein (left), Chief Development Officer of United Way of Long Island accepts a check for $5,000 from Project Warmth Fuel Fund Committee member Rocco Lacertosa, Chief Executive Officer of Oil Heat Institute of Long Island, in support of United Way of Long Island’s Project Warmth.
About the Project Warmth Fuel Fund Committee
The Project Warmth Fuel Fund Committee consists of key representatives from the energy sector across Long Island strongly committed to helping ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained and Employed) Long Islanders deal with the burden of paying for their ever increasing home energy costs. The Committee is responsible for reviewing the program’s annual development plan as well as supporting its fundraising and donor cultivation efforts. The group has quietly come together for more than 15 years to ensure that no Long Islander goes without heat during the long cold winters on Long Island. Their efforts have helped to raise more than $2.5M, which has helped more than 5,000 Long Island households stay warm during the winter.
About United Way of Long Island
United Way fights for the health, education and financial stability of every person in every community. We recruit people and organizations that bring the passion, expertise and resources needed to get things done. LIVE UNITED® is a call to action for everyone to become part of the change. United Way of Long Island is part of a worldwide network spanning across 41 countries and territories, including more than 1,200 local organizations in the U.S. For more information about United Way of Long Island, please visit UnitedWayLI.org, or follow on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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