Operation Round Up®

Mission Statement
The mission of Palmetto Electric Trust is the accumulation and disbursement of funds for charitable purposes in Beaufort, Hampton and Jasper counties.

This shall be accomplished by disbursement of funds to individuals and organizations for food, shelter, clothing, health needs and education.

Donations aided 412 individuals in ’09

The volunteer board that administers member donations to Operation Round Up awarded more than $335,000 it collected between January and December 2009 to 412 individuals and families in need, a year-end report shows. Trust chairman L.G. Smith said the board hopes to resume grants to community organizations. The trust continues to fund scholarships as well as Bright Ideas, a co-op program to reward teachers for innovative classroom projects.

Grants are made possible by member contributions to Operation Round Up. Participants donate an average of $6 a year by rounding their electric bills to the next dollar. Since 1989, almost $5 million has been granted in Beaufort, Jasper and Hampton counties.

Small Change that changes lives

Since Palmetto Electric Cooperative was formed in 1940, we have been dedicated to improving the quality of life for people in South Carolina's Lowcountry. We do this by not only providing affordable electric service to our customers, but also by our active involvement in a number of important altruistic endeavors.

One of the most successful community service efforts in which we're involved has been the Operation Round Up program. Founded by Palmetto Electric in 1989, Operation Round Up has been an incredibly successful way in which we have been able to help the less fortunate in our community. Through Operation Round Up, Palmetto Electric automatically rounds up a participating member's electric bills to the next highest dollar. For example, a consumer's monthly bill of $52.73 would be automatically rounded up to $53.00, with the additional 27 cents going to the Operation Round Up fund. On an annual basis, we are able to donate roughly six dollars for each participating customer - and that pool of money is then allocated to a variety of worthy causes throughout our service area.

With the possible participation of nearly 65,000 accounts, the money raised through Operation Round Up has the potential to make an overwhelming difference for the less fortunate in our community. In the first 10 years of Operation Round Up, Palmetto Electric raised nearly two million dollars for worthwhile charities, needy individuals, and service organizations.