Branson Rogers, Paige Wallace, Karin Fullington, and Jessica Hardy
Greenville Utilities employees raised more than $36,000 during the 2026 campaign to support the United Way of Pitt County’s (UWPC) programming.
The GUC United Way Committee launched several new initiatives designed to highlight the meaningful impact that employee contributions to UWPC have made throughout the community.
“We were able to gain many new donors this year, which was especially encouraging given the loss of several major donors due to retirements,” Co-Chair Jessica Hardy said, noting the effectiveness of the committee’s various awareness and outreach efforts throughout the fundraising campaign.
This year’s efforts included a new video (click here to view the video), created by committee member Karin Fullington, that highlighted GUC’s impact on the community through UWPC. The video told the story of some people who are positively impacted by UWPC programs, why employees donate, and how UWPC helps the community overall.
“We believe the video was very effective in demonstrating how GUC employees’ donations make a direct impact in the community through our partnership with United Way,” Jessica said.
During its annual meeting in May, UWPC honored GUC with the Community Impact Award, which recognizes a community partner whose collaboration, commitment, and support strengthen UWPC’s ability to serve those in need throughout Pitt County.
Executive Director of UWPC Dwain Cooper said, “GUC was awarded for creating a video to use in the employee campaign, and then shared with United Way’s community partners for them to showcase how United Way donations help them serve and have a positive impact on the community.”
Throughout the campaign, Jessica and Committee Chair Branson Rogers attended departmental meetings to raise awareness of United Way of Pitt County’s (UWPC) impact on the community and encourage employee participation in supporting its mission.
This year, the committee held its first Lunch and Learn in April, which was created to bridge the gap between annual campaign drives (this year’s will be October 29th-November 14th) to new employees who were hired after the campaign concluded.
This Lunch and Learn included the ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) simulation, which was an interactive experience that highlighted financial challenges faced by many households in the community.
“It was interactive and provided very valuable insight into the difficult decisions some families in our community must make,” Jessica said. “It also demonstrated how our donations help support those facing financial hardships.”
The United Way Committee is gearing up for a new campaign that will kick off in September, but in the meantime, Jessica said they are looking into collecting items to donate to people who UWPC serves.
“These types of drives will provide an alternative way for us to raise awareness about what the needs are in our community,” Jessica said.
Over the last decade, GUC employees have raised $399,450 for UWPC.
Next year, the United Way Committee’s campaign goal is $40,000.
UWPC Community Impact
The money GUC employees contribute directly impacts the community in which we serve and live. United Way has been a pillar of support for those in need in Pitt County since 1958. This highly regarded organization leads the charge to strengthening education and access to essentials.
United Way’s focus on essentials is geared toward supporting local programs that provide resources to meet people’s basic needs. That includes access to food, safe housing, and crisis management as well as developing crisis management skills.
United Way education programming is designed to support struggling, non-proficient young learners. The Early Grades Student Success Academy, a UWPC program, provides supplemental services to youth to boost academic achievement, mental health, life skills, and critical thinking, empowering them for future success.
The 2026 United Way Committee includes Chair Branson Rogers (Gas), Co-Chair Jessica Hardy (Finance), Treasurer Caitlyn McLawhorn (Finance), Secretary Andy Anderson (GMO), Karin Fullington (Public Information), Emily Smith (Customer Relations), Kelly Hawkins (IT), Lauri Evans (WTP), Paige Wallace (GMO), Brandon Jones (Meter), and Lena Previll (HR).
