Collecting Birdies and Big Bucks for N.J. Veterans

Just days after the solemn remembrances marking 23 years since the 9/11 attacks on the U.S., more than 100 Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) employees and supporters visited Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst with a single mission: raise money to help U.S. veterans.

And they accomplished their mission with great success. 

Led by JCP&L’s Veterans & Allies employee business resource group (EBRG), a Sept. 20 golf outing at the base’s Fountain Green Golf Course raised a total of $18,652 for Community Hope, a local nonprofit focused on providing housing security and mental health services to veterans of America’s armed services. 

FirstEnergy’s EBRGs were established around a common dimension of diversity and provide employees and their allies with networking, mentoring, coaching, recruiting, individual development and community outreach opportunities. JCP&L’s Veterans & Allies chapter is a group of 198 employees that work to ensure development opportunities for veteran employees and support veteran causes.  

“Community Hope’s mission to be a beacon of hope for the community, connecting those in need with life-changing support services, is a key part of strengthening our state and our communities,” said Doug Mokoid, FirstEnergy’s President, New Jersey. “I’m immensely proud of our veterans and their colleagues who step up and lead efforts to improve the lives of those who have fought for our country. It’s work like this that has led FirstEnergy and JCP&L to be recognized as a top employer for veterans.”

Community Hope is a growing organization, having more than doubled the number of individuals they’ve reached in just the past five years. Last year, the nonprofit helped provide housing security to more than 1,300 veterans and their families and provided resources to 160 individuals who continued their mental health recovery in Community Hope’s residential programs. 

“We appreciate the generous support of JCP&L and their employees, helping us restore hope and serve our neighbors, one person and family at a time,” said Carmine Deo, CEO of Community Hope. “Just like JCP&L, we are a part of the very fabric of our community – a local organization, living in our community and answering the need for help in a personal way.”

Fountain Green Golf Course is a historic course located on the grounds of the former Fort Dix, at the southwestern edge of JCP&L’s service territory. Designed in 1941, the 18-hole course has kept its original layout of small greens and tight fairways, honoring its past and the history of the fort, which was home to the Army’s first female basic training recruits in 1978 and helped train Kuwaiti civilians in basic military skills so they could take part in their country’s liberation. 

Photos from the golf outing are available to view or download on FirstEnergy’s Flickr page.

The golfers, including 63 front-line JCP&L employees from IBEW Local 1289, set out to raise $10,000, beating the $9,880 they donated last year to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. They easily eclipsed that, raising $18,652, including a $10,000 donation match from the FirstEnergy Foundation. 

“We are proud to include numerous veterans among our members, including more than 45 who have joined JCP&L’s Veterans & Allies group,” said Jeffrey Munyan, Business Manager at IBEW Local 1289. “Their ongoing support of those who have served our great nation as well as the families who lost the most on 9/11 is a reminder of the sacrifices made daily to keep our great country safe.”

Learn more about FirstEnergy’s commitment to the military and our veterans at https://www.firstenergycorp.com/careers/military.html.