Illinois American Water distributes grant to Lisle-Woodridge Fire Protection District
The Lisle-Woodridge Fire Protection District will be utilizing a $1,000 grant to fund a community "Safety Challenge" for smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors, thanks to a grant from Illinois American Water.
The IAW 2018 Firefighter Grant Program provides financial assistance to fire and emergency organizations serving communities in its service areas.
This year, approximately $77,000 will be awarded to 78 Illinois fire departments. Since the program was created in 2010, over 500 grants totaling over $493,000 has been awarded to fire and emergency organizations serving customers in Illinois American Water's service area.
"We are proud to partner with our local firefighters. Illinois American Water tests and operates every fire hydrant annually. We also maintain all of the hydrants, over 29,000 across the state, in our service areas. We know the critical role water plays in protecting homes and businesses and we also know resources for our local heroes often runs short. Through this grant program, we are able to partner on another level and further support our local heroes," said Bruce Hauk, Illinois American Water President.
Illinois American Water's Firefighter Grant Program awards grants to provide personal protective gear, communications equipment, firefighting tools, water handling equipment, training materials and classroom programs.
Fire Chief Keith A. Krestan thanked Illinois American Water during the check presentation.
"On behalf of the Lisle-Woodridge Fire Protection District, I would like to express our gratitude to Illinois American Water for their generous grant program and for awarding grant funding to our Fire District," stated Krestan.
"This award will enable our department to help combat the epidemic of non-functioning or non-existent smoke alarms in single family homes. It will allow us the ability to reach out to our community and achieve our goal to bring peace of mind to our first responders and the residents they serve knowing they have the warning they need in an emergency," added Krestan. "Ensuring our residents have early warning in an emergent situation will make it safer not only for those that we protect but also our firefighters. We are grateful that Illinois American Water has this program."
About Illinois American Water - Illinois American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to approximately 1.3 million people. American Water also operates a customer service center in Alton and a quality control and research laboratory in Belleville.
With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly-traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,100 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to over 14 million people in 45 states and Ontario, Canada. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable water services to our customers to make sure we keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.