Warm Your Hearth, Touch a Heart Recap

On Thursday, November 1st, Hearth and Home Furnishings in Zelienople hosted the 10th Annual Warm Your Hearth, Touch a Heart Campaign Kick-Off Reception. Guests mingled in the showroom, enjoyed delicious food and refreshments provided by Springfield Grille, and showed their support for the limited-income families in Butler who struggle to afford basic heating service.

In order to provide utility assistance grants to households in need, Dollar Energy Fund depends on the generosity of donors to support our program. We are also very fortunate that our utility partners, including Peoples Natural Gas, provide a dollar-for-dollar match for ever donation we receive. Dollar Energy Fund received a $20 donation for every ticket sold for this event. This amount will be generously matched by Peoples, doubling the impact and providing $40 in utility assistance per guest. That $40 is about the amount needed to help a household maintain heat in their home for one week!

More than 60 items were displayed in the ticket and silent auctions, many of which were donated from local companies and supporters including Barb Kushner, Betty’s Dairy Queen, BiLo Grocery Store, Burgers in Harmony, Butler Eagle, Carol’s Pastry Shop, Chad Slencak, Clifford’s Restaurant, Diane and Dave Anthony of Honey Do This N That, DiBella’s Subs in Cranberry, Dollar Bank, Hartmann’s Watering Hole, Herb Brittner, Holistic Houndry, Jerry’s Car Wash, Jordan Grady of the Butler County Chamber of Commerce, Olde Stonewall Golf Club, Pennie’s Bakery, Peoples Natural Gas, Prima Capelli Salon, Seven Oaks Country Club, Shadrack’s Christmas Wonderland, Springfield Grille, Spring Street Café, Subway of Butler, The Color Center, The Enchanted Olive and The Strand Theater. Many of these companies have donated year after year, and we appreciate their continued support.

The event’s silent auction and ticket raffle alone raised more than $7,500, including a generous match by Peoples. Hearth & Home also donated proceeds from their EggFest to Dollar Energy Fund earlier this year – which raised $1,340, also including a match from Peoples.

The kick-off reception is part of a much larger fundraising campaign, and we are off to a great start. This is the tenth year of the Warm Your Hearth, Touch a Heart Campaign, and so far the fundraising total is over $160,000, and counting. Beginning at this event through the end of the year, Hearth and Home Furnishings will donate a portion of their gas fireplace sales to Dollar Energy Fund. Peoples will continue to match all donations and proceeds throughout this campaign.

Dollar Energy Fund would like to send a special thank you to Nancy Reader, Megan Murphy, and everyone at Hearth and Home Furnishings who brought this event to life. Our gracious hosts are also celebrating their 35th year of business in the Zelienople community and we congratulate them on all of their success! They share our passion for helping families in need and this campaign is a testament to their character and their commitment to helping the community. Thank you to DJ Tom Menchak, who volunteered his time and equipment to provide entertainment during the evening. Also, thanks to Comcast Spotlight for their part in promoting the event and donating a Microsoft Surface for the silent auction.

Most importantly, thank you to everyone who attended the event! We look forward to making a difference to even more families in the local community.

Check out other events benefiting Dollar Energy Fund by visiting our website or sign up for our monthly email newsletter.