ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. \u2013 Duke Energy Florida customers are benefiting from the Tampa Bay Rays winning season. For each Rays win, the Duke Energy Foundation donated $1,000 to the company\u2019s Share the Light Fund, which distributes funds to social service agencies that provide energy bill payment assistance for customers.\u00a0On Friday, Sept. 18, the Foundation presented $93,000 to 14 agencies serving communities across the state. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been headquartered in the Tampa Bay area for over 125 years, so we\u2019re naturally big Rays fans. Working with the team in this way, year after year, has only strengthened that relationship, while underscoring our shared commitment to helping individuals and families when they need it most,\u201d said Melissa Seixas, Duke Energy Florida state president. \u201cWe encourage anyone who may be facing financial pressure or hardship to reach out now \u2013 there are many tools and programs, like the Share the Light Fund, that can offer some relief.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOur partnership with Duke Energy Florida and their Share the Light Fund reflects the Rays ongoing commitment to the Tampa Bay community,\u201d said Anthony Rioles, Rays vice president of corporate partnerships. \u201cWe are proud to have the opportunity to turn our success on the field into meaningful support for our neighbors and fellow Floridians when they need it most.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Share the Light Fund helps income-restricted Duke Energy customers pay for utility expenses, such as electric, natural gas, oil or wood. In addition to this initiative with the Rays, donations are made by customers, employees, retirees and company shareholders, with the Duke Energy Foundation matching up to $500,000 annually.<\/p>\n
One hundred percent of funds donated to the Share the Light Fund are distributed to trusted local agencies helping customers across Duke Energy Florida\u2019s 35-county service territory.<\/p>\n
These agencies received nearly $650,000<\/a> through the Share the Light Fund in 2025, followed by more than $436,000 from January through August 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cAn unexpected financial crisis can quickly put a household\u2019s stability at risk. Through our partnership with Duke Energy, Daystar Life has been able to help keep food and medications refrigerated, homes safely cooled and families secure across Pinellas County,\u201d said Heide Cornell, Daystar Life executive director. \u201cThis support does more than keep the lights on; it helps prevent a temporary setback from becoming a larger crisis and gives families the stability they need to move forward. We are grateful to Duke Energy for investing alongside Daystar in a stronger, more resilient community. \u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDuke Energy\u2019s continued support for our emergency assistance programs is a powerful reminder of what it means to stand behind the families in our community,\u201d said Jeff Hayward, Heart of Florida United Way president and CEO. \u201cFor Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed \u2013 or ALICE \u2013 families who are working hard and doing everything they can to make ends meet, an unexpected medical bill, natural disaster or increase in monthly expenses can quickly become a serious financial crisis. Through Share the Light, Duke Energy is helping ensure that when those moments come, families have somewhere to turn. We are deeply grateful for this partnership and for Duke Energy\u2019s commitment to being there for our neighbors when they need a helping hand.\u201d<\/p>\n Customers can visit\u00a0duke-energy.com\/ShareTheLight<\/a> for more information about the Share the Light Fund, including eligibility requirements and a county-by-county listing of agencies.<\/p>\n Duke Energy Foundation<\/p>\n The Duke Energy Foundation provides more than $30 million annually in philanthropic support to meet the needs of communities where Duke Energy customers live and work. The Foundation is funded by Duke Energy shareholders.<\/p>\n Duke Energy Florida<\/p>\n Duke Energy Florida, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, owns 12,500 megawatts of energy capacity, supplying electricity to 2 million residential, commercial and industrial customers across a 13,000-square-mile service area in Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n Duke Energy<\/p>\n Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America\u2019s largest energy holding companies. The company\u2019s electric utilities serve 8.7 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 55,700 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas utilities serve 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio and Kentucky.<\/p>\n Duke Energy is executing an energy modernization strategy, keeping customer value at the forefront as it invests in electric grid upgrades and efficient generation resources to strengthen the system and serve growing energy needs.<\/p>\n More information is available at\u00a0duke-energy.com<\/a>. Follow Duke Energy on X, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok and Facebook\u00a0for stories about the people and innovations powering its communities.<\/p>\n Tampa Bay Rays<\/p>\n The Tampa Bay Rays mission is to energize the community through the magic of Rays baseball. The organization is committed to building a strong community bond through meaningful interactions and charitable donations and has proudly represented Major League Baseball since 1998.<\/p>\n Duke Energy Florida Contact: Aly Raschid Tampa Bay Rays Contact: De Anna Sheffield Ward
\n24-Hour: 800.559.3853<\/p>\n
\nEmail: dward@raysbaseball.com<\/a> \/ media@raysbaseball.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. \u2013 Duke Energy Florida customers are benefiting from the Tampa Bay Rays winning season. For…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":406278,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-406277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/406277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=406277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/406277\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/406278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=406277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=406277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=406277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}