FirstEnergy employees in western Pennsylvania recently marked Earth Day by assisting Jeanette's community gardens. These gardens provide fresh vegetables for residents of Westmoreland County, particularly benefiting elderly gardeners and apartment dwellers.
Lucy Bittner, vice president of Jeanette Greenspaces, expressed surprise at the delivery of 12 yards of soil for the garden plots located at South Seventh and Clay streets. "I gotta tell you, I was a little fearful when I saw those two delivery trucks," she said. The nonprofit organization has been renting out these plots for eight years.
A group of volunteers known as the "Green Team" filled 22 wooden boxes with soil in about an hour. These FirstEnergy employees participate in various environmental activities such as tree planting and park cleanups.
The team also repaired a fence to protect crops from animals. However, Bittner noted that people sometimes take produce without permission: “If somebody sees something they want, let them pick it,” she said.
Glenn Labosco, a FirstEnergy engineering manager, appreciates giving back to the community through paid volunteer time off offered by his employer. “It’s important to give back to small organizations like this one that clearly need the help," he stated.
In addition to their work on the gardens, Green Team members distributed 360 white flowering dogwood saplings nearby. Travis Horn, a FirstEnergy Forestry Specialist living in Jeanette, advised planting these trees in planters if yard space is unavailable.
This initiative is part of FirstEnergy's ongoing commitment to environmental responsibility and community support. The company aims to plant 25,000 more trees by 2025 across its service areas.
For further details on FirstEnergy’s efforts towards sustainability and corporate responsibility, visit their website at www.fecorporateresponsibility.com.