Volunteering Is Personal for Utility Company Liberty – Georgia
Sponsored by: Liberty - Georgia
Plastic bottles. Old tires. Food wrappers. Discarded water heaters. Clothing.
You name it, Liberty – Georgia employees have found it while cleaning the banks of the Chattahoochee Watershed in Columbus, GA.
The watershed, which is comprised of the Chattahoochee River and numerous lakes, rivers and streams that extend from it, stretches 430 miles, from the most northern part of the Chattahoochee River Basin in the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Georgia-Florida state line.
It is the most used body of water in the state of Georgia and vital to the health and well-being of the millions who call Georgia home.
“It’s really sad to see how much waste has piled up on the banks of the Hooch and on the islands and inlets downstream,” says Ralph King, a key account representative for Liberty – Georgia and champion of volunteerism for the company.
Liberty, a local natural gas distribution company serving the Columbus and Gainesville areas, places great value on sustainability efforts and giving back to its communities.
In 2022 alone, the team, led by Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, joined 2,300 volunteers from across the state in the removal of 55 tons of litter from the banks of the Chattahoochee. And the team has been doing this for more than a decade now.
“This is our community,” says Tanya Martin, key accounts specialist for Liberty, “and we all look forward to making it better for the wildlife, for us and for the people who come to visit each year.”
The Georgia team also regularly volunteers to support Fort Moore events and programs, donating and sorting gifts for the Salvation Army Angel Tree program, supporting Gainesville and Columbus parks and recreation departments, area schools and many other programs and events that benefit the local communities.
Carolyn Bermudez, president of Liberty – Georgia, says it’s part of who they are as a company.
“While our daily work is centered around providing safe, reliable natural gas service to our communities, we are fortunate to work for a company that places a real value on giving back to our communities,” Bermudez says. “Being able to serve others outside of our daily responsibilities is a privilege and gives us as much joy as we hope it brings to the people we serve.”
