Employee volunteers from Big Rivers Electric and Kenergy installed landscaping at the new Habitat for Humanity Training Center on Thursday morning. The collaboration was part of the “Beautify the Bluegrass” campaign promoted by Governor Beshear’s office, Kentucky Living Magazine, and Kentucky electric cooperatives.
Volunteers from Paric and Cooperative Building Solutions, the two contractors currently building the new Big Rivers facility, also joined in on the action.
“This is a great example of a true partnership,” said Big Rivers Director of Communications and Community Relations Jennifer Keach. “This is the true definition of a cooperative, and we look forward to continuing to grow this partnership.”
The volunteers spent several hours Thursday morning planting trees and shrubbery near the property’s roadside.
Construction of Ms. Virginia’s Education and Training Center, named after the long-time executive director of the nonprofit, is nearly complete.
“This training center will be the first of its kind in the United States,” said local Habitat Executive Director Jermey Stephens. “It will become a living classroom for the applicants participating in Habitat’s Homeownership Program. As we near its completion, we are honored to have Big Rivers and Kenergy partner with Habitat to install the landscaping. We are even more delighted it can be part of a larger initiative, ‘Beautify the Bluegrass.'”
The training center will host workshops and classes annually covering topics from finance and budgeting to home maintenance. Stephens said the goal is to give hands-on homeowners experience to those who have never owned any property so they know what to expect when they move into their home.
Big Rivers Electric President and CEO Don Gulley said concern for the community is one of the leading principles for cooperatives.
“Our employees are quick to donate their time and skills for projects that make our area a better place to live and work,” he said. “We’re proud to help put some of the finishing touches on this first-of-its-kind home training center, with a beautifying landscaping project at a site that will soon improve opportunities for many people living in our community.”
Kenergy PR and Communications Specialist Leslie Barr added, “We are honored to work in conjunction with Big Rivers and Habitat to be a part of a project that will impact so many members of our community. Our employees were eager to volunteer to help out Habitat with the landscaping enhancements to beautify the training center and make Owensboro an even better place to live.”
Work on the training center began in 2022 when Habitat received a substantial grant from IMPACT 100. Stephens said he expects the facility to open on August 1.
