Rhode Island Energy volunteers donate over 540 hours to 17 local organizations during 2026 Day of Caring

On September 17, 2026, Rhode Island Energy sent employee volunteers to 17 community organizations across the state for its annual Day of Caring — stocking food pantries, painting classrooms, cleaning shorelines, and more. In total, the utility’s workforce contributed over 540 volunteer hours in a single day, with additional events extending through the following weekend.

Rhode Island Energy volunteers fan out across the state

The main event ran on Thursday, September 17, with a handful of additional sessions on Friday and Saturday. Across those three days, RIE employees showed up at 17 organizations doing hands-on work — the kind nonprofits often struggle to staff on their own.

Tasks varied widely depending on the site. Some volunteers packed food boxes and sorted pantry donations. Others painted walls, pulled weeds, or cleared trash from a shoreline, while a few teams built supply kits for unhoused neighbors. That range reflects just how varied community need is across Rhode Island.

The Day of Caring is the biggest single push, but it sits within a larger pattern of community engagement the company says it’s actively working to expand.

The Day of Caring isn’t a standalone RIE initiative — it’s part of a company-wide volunteer effort organized by PPL Corporation, RIE’s parent company. PPL runs the same program across its other subsidiaries, including PPL Electric Utilities, Louisville Gas and Electric, and Kentucky Utilities, mobilizing hundreds of employees across multiple states on the same occasion each year.

Volunteer hours grew 68% compared to 2025

The jump in participation is hard to ignore. In 2025, RIE logged 322 volunteer hours during its Day of Caring. This year, the company scheduled more than 540 — a year-over-year increase of nearly 68%.

That single-day figure is only part of the picture. RIE projects that its employees will donate more than 1,000 total volunteer hours to local organizations throughout 2026. The Day of Caring is the biggest single push, but it sits within a larger pattern of community engagement the company says it’s actively working to expand.

Kate Felder, Community Relations Manager at RIE, pointed to momentum as the key factor. “We’re excited to see our volunteer efforts continue to grow,” she said, “and with the momentum we have now, we will exceed our goal of reaching 1,000 volunteer hours this year.” The company frames this growth not as a one-time spike but as a sign of deepening commitment to the communities it serves.

Organizations served and tasks completed

The 17 sites covered a wide range of community needs — food access, youth development, environmental stewardship, and support for vulnerable populations.

On the food access side, volunteers showed up at the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, Northern Rhode Island Food Pantry, Good Neighbors Food Pantry, East Bay Food Pantry, FeedRI’s Mission ImPASTAble, Connecting for Children and Families, and the MLK Jr. Community Center. Work ranged from packing food baskets and sorting donations to a friendly team competition scooping pasta into one-pound bags for distribution.

Youth and social service organizations got support too. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Rhode Island had volunteers unloading donated items into a warehouse. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Northern Rhode Island got a fresh coat of paint in their teen center, while Artist’s Exchange and Gateways to Change — a facility serving people with disabilities — had classrooms and an outdoor fence painted. The WARM Center received help with a lunchroom mural, garden work, and lunch prep.

Environmental and shelter-focused sites rounded out the list. Volunteers with Save The Bay cleared trash from Oakland Beach using gloves and litter pickers provided on-site. The Woonasquatucket River Watershed Council had a shed painted, Franklin Farm had vegetables harvested for donation to the Northern Rhode Island Food Pantry, Project Weber/RENEW had teams assemble supply kits for unhoused neighbors, and Crossroads Rhode Island had volunteers prepare food for its women’s shelter.

One site required a different approach entirely. Meals on Wheels Rhode Island was served remotely, with volunteers creating greeting cards for meal-delivery recipients — a format designed to include employees with mobility limitations, keeping people connected to the mission without leaving anyone out.

Context: RIE’s community role and PPL’s broader program

Rhode Island Energy isn’t a small operation. The utility serves more than 770,000 electricity and natural gas customers across Rhode Island and employs over 1,300 people. That workforce is the engine behind initiatives like the Day of Caring, giving the company real reach when it decides to mobilize.

RIE describes its community investment as tied to a broader purpose: supporting Rhode Island’s transition to a cleaner energy future. Volunteer programs like this one are part of how the company says it stays rooted in the communities it operates in, beyond just delivering power and gas.

At the PPL Corporation level, the Day of Caring is a coordinated effort spanning multiple states and utilities, bringing together employees from across the PPL family each year around a shared commitment to community service.

If you want to learn more about Rhode Island Energy’s programs or community initiatives, check out RIEnergy.com. The utility is also active on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, and X.

Kelly Lippke

Kelly is an experienced writer with 15 years of experience exploring the big stories that shape our world, from tech breakthroughs and space exploration to climate, energy, and the fascinating quirks of science. She has a talent for turning complex ideas into sharp, memorable insights that stay with readers long after they’ve finished reading.