Avista

Today marks National Weatherization Day, and we’re celebrating the nonprofits in our community that offer no-cost programs to help our customers' homes become more energy efficient. Since 1965, Rural Resources has been serving small towns across northeastern Washington, providing a range of services to community members, including energy efficient home weatherization. The nonprofit is always finding ways to do more with less, prioritizing limited resources to serve its clients. Training staff how to properly weatherize homes has been particularly challenging since the only certified trainings offered have been held in Bellingham, Washington, over 300 miles away. Acknowledging this, Avista brought four weatherization workforce development trainings, led by The Building Performance Center, to locations across eastern Washington in 2024. Approximately 50 staff members from 8 organizations attended for free, thanks to support from Avista’s Named Communities Investment Fund (NCIF). “Folks are doing the best they can with what they’ve got,” said Matthew Shelley, Rural Resources weatherization program manager. “We have our training funds, but that gets eroded quickly with travel expenses. To have such a fantastic meeting in Spokane made it so that it was closer and more convenient,” he said. Trainings included in-class sessions and hands-on work with customers at their homes, covering topics such as mobile home retrofitting, building science principles, blower door and pressure diagnostics, combustion safety and building analyst training. This approach allowed participants to learn while actively helping local homeowners, improving their practices in real-time. Roland ‘Chris’ Driggs, crew manager, auditor, and quality control inspector at Rural Resources, highlighted the benefits. “The ability to go out there and have practical, hands-on feedback and training at a variety of levels was really useful. To see how other folks are doing it was invaluable,” he said. Renee Zimmerman manages Avista’s energy-saving home upgrades support and oversaw the effort to bring weatherization training from across the Cascades. “Many of our customers are living in homes with poor insulation, windows and heating systems. When someone can’t stay warm or cool because their home prevents it, we want to be there to help,” says Renee. “It’s why we believe in capacity-building opportunities like these trainings, so more needs can be met.” “With energy efficiency upgrades, we’re helping people make their house a home,” said Chris. “Not only are they going to be more comfortable and safer, but they can use the money they would’ve spent on an energy for whatever else they might need.” Find a weatherization program near you at https://lnkd.in/gP2VyRJF. NCIF application information and eligibility guidelines can be found at myavista.com/NCIF.

Sacarias Guitron and his wife, Lilia, opened Fiesta En Jalisco Orofino, a family-run Mexican restaurant in rural Orofino, Idaho, 30 years ago and never looked back. The location was the first in what is now a nine-restaurant chain stretching across Montana and Washington. Before they discovered Orofino, Sacarias and Lilia lived in Aberdeen, Washington, working for a different restaurant. “On his day off, Sacarias flew to the nearest airport in Lewiston. He wanted to see Orofino," Lilia said. "He liked it. He came back to Aberdeen and told me, ‘Lilia, I think we have to open this restaurant with my cousins.’ That’s how we got here.” Sacarias and his cousins, all childhood friends from Ayutla, a small town in the Mexico state of Jalisco, formed a partnership and got to work building their business. Eight other locations followed, all of which continue to be run by a family member of the original four cousins. For Lilia, Orofino became the ideal place to raise her family. She found life there mirrored her hometown. "I go to the post office and the bank, and everybody knows everybody,” she said. “Orofino is a small town where people know and help you.” In 2003, the restaurant moved to an older building a few blocks from its original location. Lilia believes it was built around 1890. The Guitrons cemented the move about six years ago, purchasing the building despite its needed upgrades. One such upgrade was recently taken care of with help from Avista. The restaurant’s lighting was completely overhauled and updated to new energy-saving LEDs. The upgrade cost just over $37,700 and is projected to save the restaurant more than 68,000 kilowatt hours of electricity each year. That’s enough to power more than three typical homes in the area for a year. Even better, Avista covered the costs of the entire project. But for Lilia and Sicarias, the overhaul means their family business can save money and continue to flourish from generation to generation. In time, their son, Abraham, will take over and manage the Orofino location full-time. For now, they’re excited to continue serving the small Idaho town they’ve come to love. “I love to interact with people,” Lilia said. “At one point, I told myself I would not work here full-time anymore. But I couldn’t do it. I came back. I love people." Washington and Idaho Avista small business customers can easily qualify for lighting upgrades, such as the one mentioned in this account. Plus, Avista typically covers 100% of the project costs. Sign up for Avista's program now at https://lnkd.in/g4UV8ise.

As we wrap up National Energy Awareness Month, here's some of the ways our employees’ teens describe how to stay safe around power lines. ??

We're proud to announce that U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Grid Deployment Office | U.S. Department of Energy selected Avista to receive approximately $85 million as part of an investment from the Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) Program. In partnership with Idaho Power , the funds will support our work to reconstruct the Lolo-Oxbow 230kV transmission line, which runs from the Oxbow Dam on the Oregon-Idaho border to Lewiston, Idaho. Upgrading this line is important for meeting our customers’ growing demands, integrating renewable energy and improving resilience against wildfire. #AvistaUtilities #GDORecipient Learn more: https://bit.ly/48cfWah

Washington’s Clean Buildings Standard (HB1257) sets energy usage targets for commercial buildings 20,000sf and larger. Compliance deadlines are fast-approaching, with some arriving in 2026. What many building owners don’t realize is that compliance must be achieved and tracked 12 months prior to the deadline. ? Check out this Journal of Business guest article by Avista’s Energy Efficiency Program Manager, Michele Drake, to learn more about the law’s purpose, compliance challenges and compliance resources. Building owners unsure how or where to begin on their compliance journey should consider Avista’s free Clean Buildings Accelerator program. It provides one-on-one guidance and helps develop a personalized plan for success. Visit https://lnkd.in/dUUceZbi to sign up.

Please join us in celebrating Kristine Meyer, Executive Director of the Avista Foundation, as she recently received the Steve Salvatori Dream Builder Award from Spokane's West Central Community Center!?? ? Since 2002, the Avista Foundation has made grants totaling over $16 million. Under Kristine’s leadership, the foundation collaborates with numerous community organizations addressing food insecurity, families in crisis, health and wellness, natural disaster recovery, education, leadership development and other community needs. ? Kristine’s dedication to serving vulnerable communities has made a lasting impact, and we are grateful for her efforts.?

Today we're sending a 15-member line crew and other personnel to Lake City, Florida to assist with repairs in preparation for Hurricane Milton making landfall. The 12-vehicle, 19-person convoy left Avista’s Coeur d’Alene office at around 7:00 a.m. this morning and should arrive in Lake City within 4-5 days. They'll join numerous other utilities from across the country that are also supporting hurricane restoration efforts. A return date for our crews has yet to be determined. We wish them safe travels! #AvistaUtilities #HurricanMilton #HurricaneHelene

The Springdale Food Pantry is known for helping families in the small Eastern Washington town. Now the helpers are receiving support of their own from Avista. Since opening, the Springdale Food Pantry has grown to serve as many as 238 people per month. That’s especially impressive for a town with just under 300 people. “It takes a village and we’re that village,” said Sue Uttech, Springdale Boosters treasurer and pantry lead volunteer. “We help with any needs. If we can’t help, we’ll find someone who can.” But volunteers have worked through tough conditions in their old building. Without good insulation or a reliable heating/cooling system, hot summers and cold winters have been hard. “We could see our breath when we were inside working during the winter,” said Krista Wilson, a volunteer and booster board member. “And it was nearly impossible to keep produce fresh long enough to give it out.” That’s changing thanks to help from Avista. This year, the pantry received support through Avista’s Named Communities Investment Fund (NCIF)* and Avista’s energy efficiency rebate programs. They also qualified for Avista’s Small Business Partner Program. A licensed contractor worked with them to learn about their energy-saving potential, identify available Avista rebates and services, provide a project bid, and install the upgrades. By the end of the project, the pantry had improved insulation, added energy-efficient LEDs with light sensors, and installed two new energy-efficient A/C and heating units. Avista’s programs covered the entire cost of the project. “Avista’s help has been beyond a blessing. We are so grateful, and it makes such a big difference,” Sue said. The Springdale Food Pantry’s drive-through pickup happens on the third Wednesday of each month from 3-5 p.m. in Springdale, behind the town hall. *Avista's Named Communities Investment Fund (NCIF) was approved by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission as part of the company's Clean Energy Implementation Plan (CEIP) to meet compliance targets for the state's Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA, 2019). The NCIF will invest up to $5 million annually in projects, programs, and initiatives that benefit Avista's Washington electric customers residing in historically disadvantaged and vulnerable communities (i.e., "Named Communities"). Community-based projects will be selected for funding through a competitive grant application process. Application information and eligibility guidelines can be found at myavista.com/NCIF.

Avista partnered with Spokane Arts in commissioning two local artists to create original artwork inspired by the Spokane theme, “We All Belong.” On October 4, from 12-1 p.m., we'll host a First Friday celebration to recognize the artists - Aaron Smith and Stacie Boyer. The new facility is located on the 700 block of West 3rd Avenue between Post and Wall in downtown Spokane. Please join us!

Congratulations to the Spokane Tribe of Indians on receiving $2.75M from the Washington State Department of Commerce, a grant that will be used to design and build a microgrid to power a new resiliency center in Wellpinit, Washington.