West Jefferson, North Carolina (May 19, 2008) n Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation and its community foundation, The Blue Ridge Electric Members Foundation, are providing funding to the new Ashe County Library.

During a ground breaking ceremony for the library today, Blue Ridge Electric contributed the first half of a $40,000 donation, with the remainder of the donation to be given in 2009. A check for $10,000 from the Members Foundation will be presented in the next few weeks.

“The Members Foundation and Blue Ridge Electric are proud to help support this important service for Ashe County,” said Kenneth Greene, president of Blue Ridge Electric. “Libraries are vital to all communities as they provide valuable and free services that assist in education and play an important role in life long learning,” he said. “The library will benefit and be enjoyed by all Ashe County citizens and will serve our community for many years into the future,” added Greene.

While Blue Ridge Electric has a long history of supporting community enhancement initiatives, the Blue Ridge Electric Members Foundation is relatively new. The Foundation was created in 2006 to fund projects recommended by members. It is funded by members through the Operation Round Up program, which is supported by members who “round up” their electric bills to the next dollar amount and donate the difference to the Foundation.

“The Ashe County Public Library Expansion Project is an excellent example of how the Members Foundation can help so many citizens,” said Brent Graybeal, chairman of the Foundation Advisory Committee. “It’s also a great example of how we can support local initiatives that matter to our local communities by working together through Operation Round Up,” he added.

The Blue Ridge Electric Members Foundation is supported by Operation Round Up as well as donations by the cooperative’s heating fuels subsidiary Blue Ridge Energies. The Foundation awards grants twice each year to deserving programs and services that contribute to the quality of life in communities served by Blue Ridge Electric. The Foundation also has awarded more than $40,000 in heating assistance funds to help members in crisis. Blue Ridge Electric is a member-owned electric cooperative serving some 73,000 consumers in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, Alleghany, Avery, Alexander and Wilkes counties.