JEA Celebrates Volunteers & Ambassadors for Service to Community

JEA celebrated its volunteers and community ambassadors who have gone above and beyond to build a better community for Jacksonville in the past year at an Oct. 29 ceremony. JEA leaders recognized 12 volunteers and 11 ambassadors for their work and celebrated two employees as JEA Ambassador & Volunteer of the Year winners.

Company leaders recognized the winners -- Community Involvement and Project Outreach Coordinator Leslie Nelson and Customer Solutions Manager Gerald Butler -- at a luncheon at the Schultz Center in Jacksonville.

JEA Managing Director & CEO Jay Stowe thanked the group of volunteers: “You represent the best of JEA and live out our mission in all that you do.”

JEA ambassadors and volunteers invest their time throughout the year to build a better community. Employees volunteer their time at the numerous nonprofit organizations, including Northeast Florida Food Bank, the USO Food Pantry and Farm Share food distributions. JEA ambassadors represent the company at various speaking engagements, sharing safety and energy-saving tips with the public.

In all, JEA volunteers gave more than 3,625 hours of their time throughout the past year. JEA ambassadors participated in more than 269 community events, virtual and onsite.

Nelson, who won Volunteer of the Year, has volunteered in JEA projects since 2012. She said she is a firm believer that time is the most important thing we can give one another. “Volunteering is important now more than ever,” Nelson said. “Many of the organizations in our community rely on the assistance of volunteers and they simply cannot operate without us.” | See video of Nelson volunteering

Butler, who has participated in JEA’s Ambassador Program for the past five years, won the annual Ambassador award. He is committed to educating our future customers about JEA careers and services. Butler said that interacting with customers at events increases his desire to provide a higher quality of service to the community. | See video of Butler serving the community

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About JEA

JEA is a not-for-profit, community-owned utility located in Jacksonville, Florida, proudly serving an estimated 478,000 electric, 357,000 water, 279,000 sewer customers and 15,000 reclaimed water customers. JEA is not owned by investors. It was created by the City of Jacksonville to serve those who live in Jacksonville and in the surrounding communities. The sole purpose of JEA’s business is to ensure the electric, water and sewer demands of its customers are met, both today and for generations to come with the goal to provide reliable services at the best value to our customers while ensuring our areas’ precious natural resources are protected.