Members Fund Over $4.5 Million In Safety Projects to Date
Co-op members: thank you! As of July 1, 2022, you’ve rounded up your bills to a total of $4,510,621.
Roundup for Safety is funded by Co-op members and governed by a Board of Directors that is independent of the Co-op and its Board of Trustees. The program helps to fund community safety project grants at the request of nonprofit organizations. Roundup is administered by the Co-op, which is very proud of the program.
Former Co-op employee and current Roundup Board Member Terri Smiley notes, “Roundup reflects perhaps the very best part of the Co-op – the spirit of community and cooperation amongst members.”
Smiley reflects that Roundup was inspired when two Co-op employees attended a 1997 National Rural Electric Cooperatives Association meeting. They learned about a similar program and decided that Flathead Electric Cooperative should have one focused on the community’s safety.
After a year of preparation and communication about the new program, members began rounding up their bills to create a safer service area for all. Over the years, Roundup for Safety has impacted millions of people in the Co-op’s service area – both residents and those passing through. Here’s a look at the program’s history:
Roundup for Safety Milestones Over the Years
- 1997 to 1998 — Roundup for Safety Board is formed and the first members opt to round up their electric bills for the greater good of the community
- February 2005 — $1 million lifetime giving to community safety projects
- December 2006 — $2 million lifetime giving to community safety projects
- March 2008 — 500 safety projects funded
- December 2013 — $3 million lifetime giving to community safety projects
- October 2016 — 1,000 safety projects funded
- 2020 — $4 million lifetime giving to community safety projects – members met this mark during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, remarkably continuing to support their local community even when their global community was in severe flux
- January 2022 — 25th anniversary of Roundup for Safety! We celebrated with a new logo, pictured above
On January 1, lifetime giving reached $4,366,752 with 1,259 projects funded. Just 6 months later, on July 1, 2022, lifetime funding reached $4,510,621 with 1,299 projects funded.
Roundup for Safety Projects Snapshot
Over the years, Roundup for Safety has helped to fund thousands of community safety projects, at the request of hundreds of nonprofits, in every part of the Co-op’s service area. Your nonprofit can apply for funds on our Grants page.
This list reflects projects funded in 2022. Note that projects may not yet be completed.
- Columbia Falls Firefighters – decontamination washer
- Stillwater Christian School – fume hood
- Kalispell Public Schools – school safety study
- North Valley Food Bank – backup generator
- Samaritan House – safety cameras
- Friends of Historic Hotel Libby – safety hazard removal
- Columbia Falls High School Baseball – AED, sports safety equipment
- Ravenwood Outdoor Learning Center – AED with pediatric pads
- Good Grief Group – life jackets
- Flathead Area Mountain Bikers Association – helmets
- Columbia Falls Swim Team – AED, swim lesson equipment
- Columbia Falls Community Market – traffic cones and signage
- The Patrol Fund – avalanche dog deployment t pack
- A Ray of Hope – shelter safety cameras
- Northwest Montana Historical Society – entrance safety cameras
- Kalispell Fire Department – stat packs
- Farming for the Future Academy – no dig fence, bear guard
- Three Rivers EMS – vacuum mattresses
- Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp – life jackets
- Libby Assembly of God – fire suppression system
- Columbia Falls Youth Softball Association – fencing
- Community for a Better Bigfork – emergency fire exit stairs
- Braveheart – protective vests
- Bob Marshall Wilderness Foundation – first aid training
- KALICO Art Center – first aid kit, grab bar, door paddle
- Flathead Rivers Alliance – loaner life jacket project
- Logan Health – bike helmets
- The Heritage Museum – roof safety abatement
- Underwater Soldiers – AED
- St. Matthew’s Catholic School – digital safety cameras
- DREAM Adaptive Recreation – AED
- Three Rivers EMS – child safety restraints for ambulance
- Habitat for Humanity – AEDs
- West Glacier School – flashing speed sign
- Flathead County Sheriff’s Posse – first responder trauma kits
- Kalispell Babe Ruth – first aid kit, ice machine
- Senior Mobile Home Repair Program – safety abatement
- Whitefish Legacy Partners – Knox boxes
- Rotary Foundation of Bigfork – flashing speed light at Creston
