Every year, more families need help staying warm. Careful planning is helping local organizations stay ahead of the cold. It can get expensive, but these organizations are here to help.
“We know Montana winters,” said Nate Kopp, program director of Prickly Pear Land Trust. “They can start next week, they can start in October, we want this wood cut as early as we can so folks can start heating their homes.”
The Warm Hearts Warm Homes program provides firewood to families who need help heating their homes in the winter. It’s a collaboration between Prickly Pear Land Trust and many other local organizations, and has been going on for the past five years.
“It was also a colder winter, and we just realized that there was an opportunity to bring together folks to do some volunteer activities outdoors and provide a service to the community,” said John Beaver, board member for Prickly Pear Land Trust.
The process of gathering firewood for the winter starts in July. It’s all dropped off at 10 Mile Creek Park, which is owned by Prickly Pear Land Trust, then it’s split and stacked by volunteers before the cold kicks in.
“The fact that we play a small role in just housing this project on 10 Mile Creek Park, it feels like a pretty small thing that we're able to do,” said Kopp. “But we know that the impact is tremendous, that folks can keep their houses warm in some of Montana's coldest months.”
Last year, they had about 15 cords of wood, and they ran out every year. This year, they have 18 cords of wood that need to be split and stacked. Volunteers can help out with that on October 23rd.
Another organization here to help Montanans with high heating costs is Energy Share. Energy Share is a private nonprofit that helps people out of energy emergencies, with over 70,000 families helped. They pay all or a portion of past-due heating bills, not leaving anyone without power. Prior to the winter, they add and train staff to have sufficient resources. They are prepared to face a larger influx of clients this year as the need for heating increases.
“It comes back to making sure our clients, that these Montana families, have their power and that they can stay warm during these cold winter months,” said Jonathan Ballew, Executive Director of Energy Share Montana.
You can find more information about Energy Share here, and about how to volunteer for Warm Hearts Warm Homes by calling Prickly Pear Land Trust.
