First Choice Power Blog — you first

Some say it is their least favorite day of the year: Daylight Saving’s.  And if you’re one of those people, we’re sorry to be the messenger.

But it’s that time: Sunday at 2 a.m. we “spring forward.”

(We’ll be sure to share the “good” news of an extra hour later this year when we move our clocks back!)

So say goodbye to one hour of sleep this weekend, or know that you’ll probably wake up an hour later than normal on Sunday.

Planning leads to our next items on the agenda for your weekend.

1) Now that it’s going to be lighter a bit later, you can change your timers and save some energy.

2) The Red Cross and many fire departments use Daylight’s Savings Time to remind you to check your smoke alarms.

• Check whether each alarm in the home is working properly by pushing the test button.
• Replace batteries in smoke alarms at least once a year.
• Immediately install a new battery if an alarm chirps, warning the battery is low.
• Replace your smoke alarm every 10 years.

More fire safety tips from the Red Cross. 

Are there changes you make for  Daylight Savings Time?

Rise and shine, Dallasites! Turn off that alarm, grab a cup ‘o joe and tune into Univision at 7 a.m. to power up your day.

Tomorrow is the premier of the second episode of Energía Goleadora, a reality show hosted by Univision, FC Dallas, FAMSA and First Choice Power.

This week, viewers will have the chance to meet the four Dallas-area families that are competing to save the most energy.

The Entrenador Energético (Energy Coach) also will introduce the contestants to their FC Dallas soccer player who will guide them during the competition.

Which soccer player and family will you be rooting for this season? Meet the families below:

Rojas Family

• Erik Rojas and his wife, Irma, have a 5-month old daughter and a 6-year-old son. They are from Mexico and have lived in the U.S. for 18 years.  Daniel Hernandez is the Hernandez’s guide. 

Rodríguez Family

• Debbie Rodriguez and her husband, Juan, have two children, a 4-year-old son and a 9-year-old daughter.  Also, Grandma Bertha lives with them. Darío Sala is the Rodriguez’s guide.

Zamora family

• Elianette Zamora and her husband, Luis, have 18-year-old twin daughters. Elianette is originally from Puerto Rico; Luis is from Costa Rica. Marvin Chavez is the Zamora’s guide.

Merlos family

• Julio Merlos and his wife, Patricia, have a 21-year-old daughter and a 16-year-old son.  They are from El Salvador and have lived in the U.S. for 19 years.  Jair Benítez is the Merlos’ guide.

Episode 2 airs Thursday, March 11, and Friday, March 12, between 7 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. on Channel 23.

Melissa Beach, left; with Maggie El-Feky of First Choice Power, center; and Stacy Faught, right, after the chamber luncheon.

On April 4 we all will see the results of one of our communities coming together to build a new home for a deserving family.

The Beach family of Kemah, Texas, were the recipients of a new home thanks to ABC Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.  Plan your watching party for the two-hour show telling the Beach family’s story and touring their new home.

As you may have read about on this blog, First Choice Power is the official electricity sponsor for the construction of the Beach home and for the Beach family. Our volunteers were on site for part of the construction process and continue to attend events supporting the community.

Most recently, some of our sales team attended the North Galveston County Chamber of Commerce luncheon featuring Melissa Beach, mother for four biological children and nine adopted children who lost their home during a hurricane.

“They are an amazing family and are truly deserving of their home,” said Maggie El-Feky, dedicated sales manager in the Houston area.

Beach thanked all of the volunteers for their participation in the build of their home as well as the support of the community and chamber.  

She discussed the 13-month wait from the time that a church member and friend nominated them to ABC.  The “thorough” process included a 100-page essay on the family, credit and background checks, approval from all of their neighbors to build the home.  They did not know that they were going to be chosen until they got the knock on the door in January.

Their new home was build in some 100 hours and is one very energy-efficient home thanks to the construction team.  

El-Feky along with nearly a dozen other First Choice Power employees were on hand when the Beach family heard details of their Disney getaway while the community built their new home.

They were restricted from watching tv, reading the Internet, checking email and talking on cell phones. 

“They basically did not have any communication with anyone while at Disney World and until they saw their new home” El-Feky explained. 

Beach described to the chamber luncheon attendees how the family is adjusting to the home and explained that it still does not feel like their home.  She also discussed her nonprofit organization that helps with the adoption process and how she travels throughout the country to promote adoption of special needs children. 

She couldn’t share details of her new home. You have to watch the show for that story.

“It’s inspiring,” El-Feky concluded. “I’m excited to see the show.”

Tune in to ABC at 7 p.m. CT on April 4 to learn more.

Given the recent horrific earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, a lot of us are wondering what we can do to help.

The American Red Cross says the best and one of the easiest ways to help is to give money. Our company matched our donations to the Red Cross in support of Haiti Relief Effort. How great is that?

A bunch of our employees also participated in a blood drive. Each donation can save as many as three lives. What better way to spend 30 minutes of your time?

There are blood drives year-round across the state. But you don’t need a blood drive to make a donation. You can schedule an appointment with your local Red Cross or at any Carter BloodCare every 60 or so days.

It’s an easy way to help your community. It doesn’t cost a thing – just your time. And you usually get a cookie and some juice, too.

General blood donor guidelines 

• Provide valid state or U.S. government issued identification 
• Not currently taking antibiotics 
• Feel healthy 
• Weigh a minimum of 110 pounds

Before you give blood

• Eat a healthy meal within four hours of your donation 
• Drink plenty of fluids 
• Note the name and dosage of medication you are taking

For more information about giving blood, visit redcross.org or www.carterbloodcare.org.

While it’s a little outdated since the holiday season is past, we really like this Red Cross video about giving blood.

What do you think?

Tune in to Univision Thursday at 7 a.m. to meet the First Choice Power energy coach: Energia Goleadora

Want to make some energy-efficiency improvements but feel like you need someone to talk you through it?

Despierta Dallas, or wake up Dallas, the Univision local morning news program will be introducing First Choice Power’s energy coach known as the Entrenador Energético on Thursday and Friday morning between 7 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. This is the first of a 14-part reality show series “Energía Goleadora” airing on Dallas Univision, Channel 23.

The Entrenador Energético will be coaching four families who will be competing between now and May to see who can save the most energy by making energy-efficiency improvements in their North Texas homes. Each episode will show the families progress and energy-efficient choices.

There’s a coach, so we also need players. That’s where our partnership with FC Dallas comes in. Each family has been assigned an FC Dallas soccer player to their home which will support and help guide their families through the competition.

The family that saves the most energy wins an all-expense paid trip to Miami to see the Premios Juventud with VIP passes, one of the biggest award shows for Latin music, and a brand new energy-efficiency washer, dryer and refrigerator from our third partner, FAMSA Inc. retail stores.

Learn more

• Episode 1 airs this week on Thursday and Friday morning between 7 a.m.-7:30 a.m.
• Tune in each week through the last week of May to follow the families as they compete.
• Viewers also will learn how to make simple improvements in their home to help save money on energy.
• Coming soon: A dedicated reality show Web site on Univision.com where you can keep up with the contestant families, get advice from the Entrenador Energético and vote for your favorite family.

What’s the first energy-efficient improvement you would make to your house if you were competing in the show?

Fan First Choice Power on Facebook. Tell us what you think!

We’ve entered another arena in the social media world: First Choice Power now has an official Facebook page.

Why would you want to be a fan of your energy company?

Take a look and you will find information you might value or just find interesting. The best part about this is you. We want to hear from you: Write a comment on our wall, share a tip, feedback, anything. We like knowing what’s on your mind.

Here’s a quick preview of what’s on the page now:

• Go Greener: Have you always wanted to be a bit more green? Would you like to save money and do something good for the environment at the same time? This page has information to help you make minor household changes that can make a big difference.
• Promotions: The information located here will keep you in the loop on beneficial promotions you can take advantage of. Learn about and enter our Win-Win-Win promotion.
• RSS/Blog: Here you can read our blog and connect with us on Flickr and Twitter all in one place! We’re providing easy information you can use and easily share with others.

So, now you probably want to know, how do you fan us? It’s a few clicks away.

• Log in to Facebook
• Search “First Choice Power”
• Click on our logo
• Click on “Become a Fan”
• Then click on “suggest to friends”

Last, but not least, please tell us what you think about our page. What did you like? What do you want to see more of?

Leave a note on our wall. Or come back and post a comment on the blog. We want to hear from you.

From left: Catherine Carlton, Jeanette Sims, Arthelia Harris and Lisa Szatkiewicz accept the award for Outstanding Growth.

Here at First Choice Power we’re pretty proud of our United Way campaign. Through a series of daily e-mails with telling facts about the need in our communities, a silent baked goods auction and some cool raffle prizes for different levels of giving, our employees stepped up when our community needs were growing.

Last time four of our employees accepted the award from the Dallas United Way for Outstanding Growth for the energy industry.

The chairman of the UW campaign explained that the 2009 campaign was in the middle of one of the toughest times to ask people to give more. But at the same time, he said, that the needs in the community had increased 40 percent.

We responded to that call for help with by increasing our employee participation, employee pledge amounts and corporate gift to the United Way.

Giving to the United Way is a company tradition. Our employees have been participating in United Way campaigns throughout our customer history — before and after deregulation.

What our employees like most about the United Way, they say, is knowing their dollars are going to help those who need it most, and, if they want to, they can designate their dollars to a particular cause or agency in their home community.

The award ceremony last night was for companies who had reached milestones, such as outstanding growth. What followed was the Heroes for Hope celebration when the campaign chair dramatically revealed the total dollars raised last year.

The new Wylie Theater in Dallas erupted in applause hearing more than $56.11 million.

Again, we’re pretty proud to be a part of that success.

We’re also pretty proud that we did our first live Tweets during the event. Check our First Choice Power’s on Twitter.

Benita Zamora of First Choice Power presents Edward Leyden, president of Bishop Lynch, with a check to support educational needs in the community.

First Choice Power and Supermercado Monterrey partnered with Game Day Production’s Inside High School Sports this fall to help local schools. 

Bishop Lynch High School in Dallas was recently selected to receive funding from First Choice Power and Supermercado Monterey because of its proximity to the Supermercado Monterrey on Fergusen Street in Dallas. There First Choice Power has been helping community members save money by signing up for electricity with First Choice Power.

“In honor of the new customers who enrolled for service with First Choice Power in the Bishop Lynch community, we are making this contribution to your school today,” said Benita Zamora, a First Choice Power representative who delivered the donation during a faculty meeting Wednesday morning.

“These funds  can be used where your students and teachers need it most — for school supplies, new athletic uniforms or for energy-efficient improvements to save energy,” she added.

Zamora challenged the teachers to invite her back this fall to award Classroom Energy Innovation Grants and provide additional educational support for Bishop Lynch.

On a typical winter day in North Texas, electric heat customers typically use about twice as much electricity as a gas heat customer. 

On a very cold day, perhaps like today, it can be almost three times as much. 

On a monthly basis, it’s an average of about two and a half times more for electric heat customers. For January, a typical electric heat customer might use 2,500 kilowatt-hours compared with the 900 kWhs of a gas-heat customer.

Whether you have electric or natural gas heat, with the snow coming down, you’re probably using more electricity today than normal.

What are you doing to be energy-efficient?

The museum has added insulation and CFLs to make the expansion energy-efficient.

The Hamilton County Historical Museum needs more space.

The museum currently resides in an old home. The kitchen displays historical kitchen appliances; one bedroom has World War II displays; and another has dresses and fashion from decades ago.

“We are desperately in need of more room in our museum,” said Frances Gardner, president of the Hamilton County Historical Museum. 

The expansion will be into a cement block building across the street from the current museum location. Frances said: “It needs to be completely redone.”

It needs fluorescent lights, CFL light bulbs, sheetrock, insulation, energy-efficient heating and cooling units with programmable thermostats and a tankless water heater, she added.

That’s why she applied for — and received — a 2009 First Choice Power Reduce Your Use Grant. 

“We will use what we learn about energy efficiency to improve, update, utilize and transform an old candle factory building into our Museum Annex and into a tourism asset for Hamilton,” Gardner said. ” We can then display more of our historical items to help educate young students and all of our visitors.”

The Hamilton County Historical Museum volunteers are busy painting and cleaning the building while installing CFLs and insulation to prepare for the expansion.

The new building will showcase more historical artifacts and allow the museum staff to expand on the great stories they are able to tell about Hamilton County.

Helping nonprofits be energy-efficient by awarding Reduce Your Use Grants is one way First Choice Power gives back to the communities it serves. Applications for 2010 grants are due April 15.

• More information about the Hamilton museum
• More information about 2010 Reduce Your Use Grants