During a special check presentation, Entergy executives and employees met with executives from , the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude, where they presented the check for the overall amount of employee contributions made to St. Jude in 2023 across Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas – where Entergy employees live and work.��

“Because of partners like Entergy and the generosity of its employees, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital can continue to lead the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases,” said , President and CEO of ALSAC. “St. Jude is grateful for every generous donation provided through programs like payroll contributions. These simple acts of kindness make a major impact on the future of research and treatment for kids with cancer in the U.S. and around the world.”����

When St. Jude opened in 1962, childhood cancer was largely considered incurable. Since then, St. Jude has helped push the overall survival rate from 20% to more than 80% today. With support from Entergy, St. Jude can continue to provide children with cutting-edge treatments that are not covered by insurance, at no cost to families.

At Entergy, our vision “We Power Life” extends beyond simply delivering essential energy services to our customers. Through strategic partnerships, we are committed to implementing various initiatives that address poverty, promote education and workforce development, provide financial assistance to our vulnerable customers, and enhance both our communities and the environment.

Entergy is dedicated to investing in critical programs and initiatives that foster the growth and prosperity of the communities where we live, work, and serve. Learn more about Entergy’s community engagement efforts.

Since 2020, the fund has helped make payments on the Entergy New Orleans bills of grocery store employees who have experienced financial impacts from the pandemic. In partnership with the United Way of Southeast Louisiana and Anthony Mackie, a New Orleans native, we have been able to provide a one-time $400 direct credit toward 75 grocery store employees’ utility bills.

“The relief fund has given a helping hand to customers who help us feed our families every day,” said Jean Walker, senior associate, corporate social responsibility. “We recognize the negative impacts that the pandemic had on families and their ability to make ends meet. The relief fund and our additional bill help services have allowed us to partner with the community and our customers to help keep their lights on, so they may have one less bill to worry about.”

Fund recipients can apply their credit toward current and past-due bills. Eligible applicants for the United for Grocery Workers Relief Fund must meet these requirements:

• Work in a business that sells groceries
• Live in Orleans Parish
• Provide current pay stub to show proof of employment��
• Provide current Entergy New Orleans power bill to show proof of residence (address on pay stub must match power bill)

The online application is available at and includes directions on how to use smart phones to submit required documents.

The company was No. 1 on UWSELA’s 2021 Top 10 Most Generous Workplaces list. The annual ranking is determined by a company’s philanthropic contributions to and through UWSELA during the previous fiscal year.��

Entergy shareholders and employees raised or contributed $1.4 million to UWSELA in 2020. Collectively, UWSELA’s 2020-2021 contributions campaign, chaired by Entergy Executive Vice President and General Counsel Marcus Brown, brought in $3.7 million through contributions from New Orleans area companies and their employees as well as individual donors and other campaign fundraising efforts.��

UWSELA also recognized its 2021 LIVE UNITED award winners. Entergy’s own Brad Fleming, senior lead regulatory analyst, was awarded the Hidden Hero award for his service on the UWSELA finance committee and additional volunteerism. The LIVE UNITED awards recognize individuals and partners who help advance the organization’s mission to eradicate poverty in Southeast Louisiana.����

Through our partnership with United Way, we help create vibrant, stronger communities. Each year, Entergy employees participate in United Way campaigns to raise funds for their communities. Company shareholders match employee contributions dollar-for-dollar to maximize the impact of employee giving.��

Pictured left to right: UWSELA Board of Trustee Chair Cathy McRae, Marcus Brown, Brad Fleming, Entergy CSR Program Coordinator Kaleb Stargel and UWSELA President and CEO Michael Williamson.

Corporate Social Responsibility at Entergy
For more than 100 years, Entergy has powered life in our communities through strategic philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy’s corporate social responsibility initiatives help create and sustain thriving communities, position the company for sustainable growth and are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Our top CSR priorities are education/workforce development, poverty solutions/social services and environmental programs. Entergy annually contributes $16-$18 million in shareholder-funded grants to approximately 2,000 nonprofit organizations in the communities where we operate.

ALICE individuals are first responders, child care workers, grocery store employees, restaurant employees, delivery drivers, warehouse workers, truck drivers, sanitation workers and others who keep our communities safe and running. ALICE individuals work hard in jobs that are critical, but that often don’t pay enough for them to make ends meet.��

At Entergy, our focus on ALICE is rooted in the economic reality of the communities we serve — we know ALICE well. For more than 20 years, Entergy has been committed to helping power ALICE families, not only by keeping their power on and gas flowing, but by equipping them with the tools to succeed and inspiring action from businesses, policy makers and communities to build stronger financial stability for hardworking families throughout Louisiana.��

That is why Entergy is proud to partner with the Louisiana Association of United Ways to sponsor the , high-quality, research-based information that fosters a better understanding of who is struggling in our communities.��

According to new research found in the 2020 ALICE report for Louisiana released this month by the Louisiana Association of United Ways, in 2018, more than 576,000 of Louisiana’s 1.7 million households were ALICE – a record number unable to afford the basics for survival, despite working. That’s in addition to the nearly 315,000 families living in poverty.

Entergy is deeply concerned about the recovery road ahead for Louisiana families. As a longtime partner of United Way and state sponsor of the ALICE report, we recognize the importance of seeking a deeper understanding of the challenges in our state. Entergy relies on these insights to improve the ways we help our communities and customers.

And as we reflect on our collective experiences through COVID-19, we can see that ALICE workers are providing essential services to help keep us safe and healthy. We also know that COVID-19 had a disproportionate impact on ALICE households. That’s why we are proud to have partnered with United Ways and other nonprofits to provide more than $1.4 million in assistance for ALICE families.

As our communities continue to recover from the economic impact of COVID-19, it is important to lift up their stories and ensure ALICE has a proper place as we all chart the course for immediate recovery and beyond.

This partnership is an opportunity to power thousands of volunteers in creating sustainable value for communities we serve across a seven-parish region in Southeast Louisiana. After normal volunteer activities resume post-COVID-19, the volunteer center will support 170 community partners in recruiting and managing volunteers to execute high-impact service projects helping to revitalize schools, improve early childhood education, ensure economic stability, restore natural and built environments, and create safe, healthy and vibrant neighborhoods.��

“On our journey to build the premier utility, collaborative partnerships such as this one are vital in helping us honor our commitment to improve the quality of life in the communities we serve,” said Patty Riddlebarger, vice president of corporate social responsibility. “There is no single organization impacting as many people in as many ways as United Way. We are proud of our continued partnership, identifying and addressing gaps in the stability and well-being of Louisianans.”��

Phone a Senior

Rising to the challenge to support our neighbors and nonprofit partners in times of crisis, the first project spon​sored by United Way HandsOn Entergy Volunteer Center is a Phone a Senior virtual volunteer opportunity. Entergy employees and community members are calling senior citizens in Orleans Parish to assist the Save Our Seniors meal delivery drivers by verifying contact information, reporting back any updates and ensuring meals are delivered.��This effort provides a vital lifeline to alleviate social isolation and let our elderly neighbors know someone cares.����​

“Though we must all maintain physical distance from one another during this time, it’s important we don’t distance our emotions and capacity to care for one another,” said Laura Plante, senior IT consultant and Phone a Senior volunteer. “Since starting the Phone a Senior program, I’ve befriended five seniors, calling them to arrange delivery time and location. I’ve also made routine checkup calls. Those calls are as much for me as they are for them. We give each other tips for keeping busy, discuss how this situation has impacted our lives, and share recipes and��laughter –��the��best medicine.”����

Entergy donated $25,000 to the Van Buren Intermediate School District from the company’s COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund. Funds will be used to:

• Support meals to students and families in Van Buren County.
• Purchase 9,000 face shields for local fire departments, hospitals and first responders.
• Provide devices to support staff and students in educational distance learning.
• Support families and students with necessities or financial assistance.

Entergy also granted $12,500 to the United Way of Southwest Michigan to support their relief efforts in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.

“We know from experience that working families and low-income elderly and disabled customers are hardest hit during times of crisis,” said Patty Riddlebarger, vice president of Entergy’s corporate social responsibility. “We are working quickly to make funds available to community partners that serve vulnerable households to lessen the economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis and ensure families have the resources they need to get by during this time of uncertainty.”

To support the most vulnerable customers, Entergy shareholders committed $700,000 to establish the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund to help qualifying customers with basic needs such as food and nutrition, rent and mortgage assistance, and other critical needs until financial situations become more stable.

Grants from the fund will be provided to United Way organizations and other nonprofit partners across Entergy’s service area that are providing services to impacted households.����

“Steve is a community servant that we are proud to have on our team,” said Heather Otten, VITA manager for Capital Area United Way. “A man with a servant’s heart, Steve dedicates his time to helping low-income families through the arduous tax preparation process with knowledge, humility and, most notably, humor.”

Miller, an industrial account executive, had volunteered for local food banks and homeless shelters and was searching for new opportunities to serve when he noticed an employee story about VITA volunteer training. Completing someone else’s tax return seemed intimidating at first, but he decided to give it a try.

“The training session gave an overview of the software that volunteers use to prepare returns,” he said. “If a tax return is too complicated, it’s out of our scope. Volunteers with the basic level of training are able to help with 80 percent of the returns. I realized they definitely needed help, and it’s a good benefit for people in the community who need tax assistance.”��

From January through April, Miller volunteered at Jones Creek Library at least three days a week, putting in hours after work and on Saturdays. In addition to his proficiency at completing returns, Miller’s award recognized his engaging personality and friendly demeanor.

“Many people don’t file taxes because of their fear and anxiety about dealing with the IRS, so the first thing I do is make them feel at ease and build their trust and let them know it’s in their favor to file,” Miller said. “They’re eager to get things squared away, so the last thing they need is someone who’s going to make things difficult.”

Over the last two years, Steve volunteered more than 200 hours at the Jones Creek Library VITA site. This year he directly served 62 families and helped his team serve an additional 199, according to Capital Area United Way.

“Steve and his team helped bring $302,441 in total refunds and $103,416 in Earned Income Tax Credits back into our community and into the hands of hardworking families who need it most,” Otten said.

Miller noted that the majority of VITA clients are low-income families and retirees, including many single parents with multiple jobs. The VITA site must turn some people away because of staffing shortages — a situation he hopes to avoid in the future by encouraging more people to volunteer.

“Many clients we help are working two, three or four jobs and still don’t make a lot of money,” he said. “When you look at their income situation, you wonder how they get by, especially if they have kids. I hope the Earned Income Tax Credit program doesn’t go away, because it really makes a difference in their lives. And even if they end up having to pay taxes, people are 100 percent grateful for the help they receive, no matter the outcome.”

Each year, Entergy employees volunteer during Super Tax Day events or support IRS-sponsored VITA sites. Employees can then convert their volunteer hours into company-sponsored grants to charitable organizations in their communities, a program called Double Your Dollars.

“Since creating the VITA volunteer incentive three years ago, we’ve seen tremendous growth of our employees becoming IRS-certified as basic or advanced preparers,” said Kristin Masoner, senior customer service specialist, Louisiana public affairs. “Not only is the Double Your Dollars incentive attractive to our employees, but we’re seeing that the overall willingness to volunteer and give back in their local community is rewarding in itself.”

Since 2011, Entergy’s support of VITA sites in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas has helped approximately 93,000 customers receive more than $162 million through the EITC program.

Our employees live in the same communities in which they work, and they know how important it is to help their towns be the best that they can be. One way of doing this is by helping local charities.

Recently, some employees from Gerald Andrus teamed up with the Washington County United Way in Greenville, Mississippi, to help improve the homes of elderly and disabled residents within their community.

“We had employees volunteer their time on a Saturday to support the United Way’s housing initiative,” said employee Julia Johnson. “The homeowner was very pleased with all the work done to her house, and it was a great teambuilding activity for volunteers.”

We’re proud of the following employees for spending a Saturday doing good: Matt Wells, Steve Burchfield, Doug Colburn, Wesley Hobbs, Don Williams, Daniel Holcomb, Ryan Merideth and Julia Johnson.