UIL Employee Giving Campaign Breaks Company Donation Record

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Oct. 26, 2015 -- The UIL Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UIL) announced today that the 2015 Employee Giving Campaign raised $397,117, a record tally that will help hundreds of nonprofit organizations serve their clients and communities.

Employees donated $271, 701 during the two-week campaign in September. UIL matched that amount 50 cents on the dollar for qualifying nonprofits, bringing the total to $397,711. That total is $12,000 more than 2014 and the most ever raised by the campaign. Since 2008, UIL Employee Giving Campaign has raised nearly $1.8 million.

Donors came from all of the UIL operating companies: The United Illuminating Company, The Southern Connecticut Gas Company, Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation and The Berkshire Gas Company.

“We asked our employees this year to ‘lead the way and give today,’” UIL President and CEO James P. Torgerson said. “Their response was amazing and shows that they are generous and care about the communities they live in. We are very pleased to help these nonprofit groups continue their essential service.”

Among the 332 nonprofit organizations that will receive funds include large organizations like the American Red Cross, regional charities like the New Haven Diaper Bank and smaller nonprofits like Bikers Against Animal Cruelty. The campaign allows employees to select the charity they choose to support.

Dawn White-Bracey is executive director of Sisters’ Journey, a Hamden-based nonprofit that supports survivors of breast cancer and encourages the community to take advantage of early detection screenings in order to save lives. Sisters’ Journey received donations from numerous UIL employees.

“We have never received big grants from outside corporations. For 17 years, our funding has come from community-based donations. So we appreciate the UIL employee giving program, because it keeps us going, it helps pay the day to day bills. It reminds us that there are UIL employees who appreciate what we are doing and they support us,” White-Bracey said.

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Connecticut and Western Massachusetts also received support from UIL employees. The organization also recently received separate $25,000 grant from the UIL Holdings Corporation Foundation.

“Our families at the Ronald McDonald House are so appreciative, knowing that people they don’t even know are pitching in to help them through the trauma of their lives-the life threatening illness of their child. Thanks to all the UIL employees who pitched in to help out,” Clark said.

In Massachusetts, employees at Berkshire Gas Company donated to more than 30 nonprofits.

“Thanks to the support of Berkshire Gas Company employees, Berkshire Humane Society was able to continue to provide medical attention for those animals in need. The generosity of Berkshire Gas employees led to many unwanted animals finding loving homes,” said Berkshire Humane Society Executive Director John Perreault.

About UIL Holdings Corporation

Headquartered in New Haven, Connecticut, UIL Holdings Corporation (NYSE:UIL) is a diversified energy delivery company serving more than 725,000 electric and natural gas utility customers in 67 communities across two states, with combined total assets of over $5 billion.

UIL is the parent company of The United Illuminating Company (UI), The Southern Connecticut Gas Company (SCG), Connecticut Natural Gas Corporation (CNG), and The Berkshire Gas Company, each more than 100 years old. UI provides for the transmission and delivery of electricity and other energy related services for Connecticut’s Greater New Haven and Bridgeport areas. SCG and CNG are natural gas distribution companies that serve customers in Connecticut, while Berkshire Gas serves natural gas customers in western Massachusetts. UIL employs more than 1,900 people in the New England region.