The Burrell Foundation in action

Local People & Places, News & Announcements / 4 minutes of reading /

Powering people, partnerships, possibilities

Pro­vid­ing reli­able, afford­able and safe elec­tric­i­ty has always been York Electric’s pri­ma­ry mis­sion, but car­ing for the peo­ple and com­mu­ni­ties we serve has always been just as impor­tant.

In 2019, York Elec­tric employ­ees estab­lished The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion to car­ry out that com­mit­ment. Named in hon­or of Dick Bur­rell, a for­mer coop­er­a­tive trustee, the Foun­da­tion lives out his lega­cy of com­pas­sion, gen­eros­i­ty and a com­mit­ment to help­ing oth­ers.

The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion works to empow­er, enrich and build by help­ing neigh­bors through hard times, strength­en­ing com­mu­ni­ty part­ner­ships and invest­ing in oppor­tu­ni­ties that improve the qual­i­ty of life for peo­ple across York Electric’s ser­vice area. Guid­ed by the mis­sion of pow­er­ing peo­ple, part­ner­ships and pos­si­bil­i­ties, the Foun­da­tion strives to cre­ate sta­bil­i­ty and oppor­tu­ni­ties for our neigh­bors to thrive.

A nine-mem­ber board leads The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion, con­sist­ing of co-op employ­ee vol­un­teers, York Elec­tric Board of Trustee mem­bers and com­mu­ni­ty rep­re­sen­ta­tives. Togeth­er, they iden­ti­fy com­mu­ni­ty needs, over­see fund­ing deci­sions and ensure resources are direct­ed where they can make the great­est impact.

The community’s gen­eros­i­ty has always made The Bur­rell Foundation’s mis­sion pos­si­ble. Event spon­sors, donors and vol­un­teers have sup­port­ed the Foun­da­tion over the years at the Live Auc­tion Gala, along with the newest fundrais­er, the Tee­ing Up Hope Golf Tour­na­ment.

Burrell by the numbers

Five colored panels in an infographic show fundraising milestones with icons and amounts: $167,912, $28,321, $300,000+, $50,911, and $40,000.
$167,912 giv­en back to the com­mu­ni­ty (2020–2025). $28,321 in finan­cial assis­tance in 2026. $300,000+ raised through our annu­al Live Auc­tion Gala since 2022. $50,911 raised at the 2026 Tee­ing Up Hope Golf Tour­na­ment. $40,000 award­ed to local school dis­tricts for the 2025–2026 school year.
Four men posing together on a sunny golf course, wearing polo shirts and shorts.
Co-op employ­ees John Good, Michael Dick­son, Bri­an Bolin and Andy Jack­son (left to right), par­tic­i­pat­ed in the 2026 Tee­ing Up Hope Golf Tour­na­ment. Pho­to by Erin Nichols
Two people ride a golf cart along a winding path beside a pond on a sunny golf course with green grass and trees.
For the first time in March 2026, the Tee­ing Up Hope Golf Tour­na­ment brought togeth­er spon­sors, golfers and vol­un­teers to sup­port The Bur­rell Foundation’s mis­sion. Pho­to by Erin Nichols
Burrell Foundation logo

Every child deserves the oppor­tu­ni­ty to excel in school, but for some stu­dents in our com­mu­ni­ties, life’s chal­lenges go beyond the class­room. Hous­ing insta­bil­i­ty, unex­pect­ed hard­ships and oth­er life emer­gen­cies can pre­vent stu­dents from focus­ing on learn­ing.

A fed­er­al law, known as the McK­in­ney-Ven­to Home­less Assis­tance Act, helps ensure that stu­dents expe­ri­enc­ing home­less­ness or hous­ing insta­bil­i­ty can con­tin­ue their edu­ca­tion despite these chal­lenges. Through its McK­in­ney-Ven­to sup­port grants, The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion part­ners with Clover, Fort Mill, Rock Hill and York schools. For the first time this past year, each school dis­trict received a total of $10,000 in fund­ing to help meet stu­dents’ imme­di­ate needs.

Every student’s sit­u­a­tion is dif­fer­ent, so school dis­trict staff and guid­ance coun­selors have the flex­i­bil­i­ty to apply funds where they’re need­ed most. This may look like emer­gency hotel stays, util­i­ty assis­tance, cloth­ing and shoes, hygiene sup­plies or even a wash­er and dry­er for a sin­gle par­ent. The grants have also helped stu­dents pay for school lunch­es, field trips, after-school care and eye exams and glass­es.

Even if the need varies from fam­i­ly to fam­i­ly, the program’s pur­pose is always to help stu­dents con­tin­ue to attend school and par­tic­i­pate in the class­room.

The impact of these part­ner­ships is best expressed by the school dis­trict lead­ers and staff that see these needs first­hand.

Portrait of an elderly man with gray hair and glasses, wearing a blue checkered shirt and dark blazer, smiling.

BRYAN GREESON, DIRECTOR OF SPECIAL SERVICES, YORK SCHOOL DISTRICT ONE

“Our vision at York School Dis­trict One is to learn, serve and give—as one. The gen­er­ous sup­port from The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion Sup­port Grants has allowed YSD1 to serve fam­i­lies who have found them­selves in need.”

Smiling young woman with dark hair in a bun, wearing a gray vest over a black shirt, against a light textured background.

SHARADA ABRAHAM, FAMILY OUTREACH ASSOCIATE, ROCK HILL SCHOOLS

“Rock Hill Schools is thank­ful to part­ner with The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion to sup­port our most vul­ner­a­ble fam­i­lies by meet­ing imme­di­ate needs such as trans­porta­tion, cloth­ing, school sup­plies, meal assis­tance and emer­gency sup­port. This sup­port helps us remove bar­ri­ers to learn­ing by allow­ing our stu­dents to focus on their edu­ca­tion and their future. We’re so very grate­ful that The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion has cho­sen to invest in brighter futures and mak­ing school sta­bil­i­ty pos­si­ble for the fam­i­lies we serve.”

Portrait of a smiling woman with shoulder-length dark hair against a white background.

MEGHAN GRAY, ATTENDANCE AND RESIDENCY COORDINATOR, FORT MILL SCHOOL DISTRICT

“The Fort Mill School Dis­trict has been able to sup­port our home­less stu­dents in ways that nev­er would have been pos­si­ble with­out the gen­er­ous dona­tion from the Bur­rell Foun­da­tion. We’ve been able to assist fam­i­lies in secur­ing emer­gency short term hous­ing, pro­vid­ing trans­porta­tion assis­tance and after­school care, and obtain­ing per­ma­nent hous­ing so that all chil­dren can par­tic­i­pate ful­ly in their edu­ca­tion.”

A man in a gray suit giving a speech, with an American flag in the background.

COURTNEY JONES, ATTENDANCE OFFICER, CLOVER SCHOOL DISTRICT

“The Bur­rell Foun­da­tion has been a valu­able part­ner to our Social Work Depart­ment in the Clover School Dis­trict. They have pro­vid­ed fund­ing that helps us meet the imme­di­ate needs of stu­dents and fam­i­lies iden­ti­fied as home­less under the McK­in­neyVen­to Act. Their sup­port allows us to pro­vide trans­porta­tion assis­tance; pay for eye exam­i­na­tions and glass­es; and respond to many oth­er non-school relat­ed emer­gen­cies. Through their gen­eros­i­ty, we are able to remove bar­ri­ers to edu­ca­tion, increase fam­i­ly sta­bil­i­ty, and ensure that vul­ner­a­ble stu­dents have the resources they need to suc­ceed.”

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