August 30, 2024
(press release)
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PG&E Foundation Funding for Fourth Consecutive Year Supports Hometown Restaurants, Commercial Caterers OAKLAND, Calif., Aug. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Locally-owned Northern and Central California restaurants — and a few commercial caterers — are receiving a financial boost from the California Restaurant Foundation (CRF) and The PG&E Corporation Foundation (PG&E Foundation) through grants to invest in equipment upgrades, workforce training and more. The grants reflect a commitment to strengthen restaurants for long-term business success so they can continue contributing to local economies and communities. The PG&E Foundation's $900,000 charitable contribution this year is funding $5,000 grants to 154 hometown restaurants in 29 counties in Pacific Gas and Electric Company's (PG&E) service area, as well as operating support for CRF, which administers the grant program. The funding comes from PG&E shareholders, not customers. The PG&E Foundation's contribution to CRF's Restaurants Care Resilience Fund current grant cycle will help grantees pay for equipment and technology upgrades, unforeseen hardship, employee retention bonuses and training to help restaurant owners invest in their business and people. Grants were made available to California resident restaurant owners with fewer than five locations and less than $3 million in revenue, and prioritized minority- and women-owned businesses. For the first time this year, the grants were open to commercial caterers based on appeals for support for catering companies because they also are part of the local food scene. Plant Slayer, which started out as a food truck in 2020 before becoming a brick-and-mortar establishment in downtown Fresno two years ago, is one of the recent grant recipients. "Running a restaurant is really difficult in California… fees, employees, the cost of goods going up — and you put the word vegan in front of that and it costs more," co-owner Gina Perez said. "We were excited that we were one of the restaurants chosen." Perez said she is mostly looking forward to giving bonuses to Plant Slayer's five employees who have been especially dedicated to seeing the business succeed. Since 2021, PG&E and the PG&E Foundation have contributed $3.2 million in funding to the CRF's Restaurants Care Resilience Fund providing grants ranging from $3,000 to $5,000. (See our "From Kitchen to Community" video featuring past grant recipients in PG&E's service area.) With this year's funding, PG&E has now helped provide grants for a total of 675 restaurants and caterers in Northern and Central California. "We all have fond memories of celebrating special occasions with the people we love at our hometown restaurants — with good meals at the center, they truly are the gathering spots in our communities. Through our partnership with the California Restaurant Foundation, we want to make sure these neighborhood businesses, many of them family-owned and operated, continue to thrive for years to come," said PG&E Corporation Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs and Chief Sustainability Officer Carla Peterman. "Since the launch of the Restaurants Care Resilience Fund in 2021, PG&E and the PG&E Foundation have been steadfast and generous supporters, helping hundreds of independent restaurant owners throughout Northern and Central California strengthen their businesses for the future," said Alycia Harshfield, Executive Director of the California Restaurant Foundation. CRF began the Resilience Fund in 2021 to support restaurants recovering from economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, which contributed to many restaurants closing their doors temporarily or permanently. PG&E and The PG&E Corporation Foundation have supported the program since its inception. To date, CRF's Resilience fund has provided financial assistance to more than 1,600 independent restaurants and caterers across California. Among this year's grant recipients, 80% are single location establishments with an average 10 years in business, 79% of recipients identify as female and 76% of owners identify as minority. Some 70% of this year's recipients plan to use the $5,000 grants for kitchen equipment or technology upgrades, and 21% will dedicate the funds to employee retention bonuses. Assisting Restaurants and Small and Medium Businesses PG&E remains committed to providing ways for its small and medium business customers to save energy and money amid recent economic hardships including the pandemic and recent inflation. Here are some ways PG&E is helping its customers: For more information on PG&E Small and Medium Business customer support, visit pge.com/smbsupport. Customers can also find more ways to reduce their energy costs at PG&E's Small Business Podcast "Straight Talk with PG&E," on iHeart, Apple and Spotify. About PG&E About The PG&E Corporation Foundation
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation (NYSE: PCG), is a combined natural gas and electric utility serving more than sixteen million people across 70,000 square miles in Northern and Central California. For more information, visit pge.com and pge.com/news.
The PG&E Corporation Foundation is an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, separate from PG&E and sponsored by PG&E Corporation.
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