Air Products Launches Multi-Decade Community Fund to Support Lake Maurepas
Public Safety is the Focus of Two Inaugural Grants Totaling $800,000 Awarded to Lake Maurepas First Response Agencies
October 12, 2023 – Today, Air Products announced the launch of the Lake Maurepas Community Fund, which will commit $1 million annually to communities bordering Lake Maurepas starting in 2023 through the overall operation of its Louisiana Clean Energy Complex project, which is currently anticipated to be at least 25 years. Through engagement with its stakeholders, Air Products – via its charitable giving affiliate, the Air Products Foundation, will award grants to eligible non-profit organizations supporting ecological, educational, and recreational improvements for those who live, work, and visit the Lake Maurepas area.
At launch, the Fund is making inaugural investments to support the missions of two safety-focused organizations. The Livingston Parish Fire Protection District #2 and the Manchac Volunteer Fire Department will each receive a grant of $400,000 to support their first response missions, facilitating the purchase of new patrol and emergency response boats that will bolster response times and accrue to overall safety for residents, boaters and commercial fisherman on Lake Maurepas.
Air Products is committed to being a good neighbor in Louisiana and in all areas where it operates, and its work through the Lake Maurepas Community Fund and the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex further deepens that commitment.
“Air Products and its employees are committed to improving the Lake Maurepas community for all who spend time on the lake and beyond, through supporting and improving the environment, promoting boater safety, and enhancing educational opportunities in the area,” said Danna LeBlanc, commercial executive director for the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex, chair of the Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund, and a south Louisiana native.
“First response agencies play a critical role in the lake community, and they need to have the best equipment possible to keep our lake safe and healthy. It’s only fitting that the first grants from the Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund are directed toward their missions,” LeBlanc said.
Brian Drury, chief of Livingston Parish Fire Protection District #2, said, “There is no money in our budget to purchase this type of vessel. We would’ve had to ask for a tax to make this happen. We love our community and this donation just enables us to give them more support. It’s another huge step for making it a safer place for everyone to come enjoy our waterways on the weekend – and to live.”
George Coxen, chief of the Manchac Volunteer Fire Department said, “Having more emergency response boats helps us fulfill our volunteer spirit of service to our community around Lake Maurepas and improves our ability to get to a scene to assist our neighbors.”
About the Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund
The Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund will be overseen by local community leaders with a deep understanding of Lake Maurepas and the surrounding region, along with key Air Products employees who live and work in the area. As such, all decisions about funding will be firmly rooted in the needs of the community and driven from a local level.
The Fund will support parishes bordering Lake Maurepas by funding needed educational, ecological, and recreational projects for years to come, with a focus on Livingston, St. John the Baptist, and Tangipahoa Parishes. Driving grantee selection, members of the Advisory Committee will assess and recommend potential areas of support for grant opportunities to relevant non-profit organizations that meet Fund criteria and eligibility.
Looking forward, Air Products strives to continue its more than five-decade history of safe and responsible operations in Louisiana, both through its proposed Louisiana Clean Energy Complex currently under development and in future investments. To learn more, visit http://Community.CleanEnergyLouisiana.com.
About the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex
Air Products is developing the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex, which will advance energy independence by creating clean energy at a plant constructed and operated along the Gulf Coast. This $4.5 billion project is Air Products’ largest investment in the United States and will help Louisiana meet its long-term carbon-reduction goals while creating and supporting local jobs.
The new facility will create 170 new jobs with an average salary of $93,000 a year and 2,000 construction jobs. Currently, Air Products employs 330 people in Louisiana at 18 facilities across the state, with employees actively contributing to the communities where they live and work.
For more detailed information about Air Products’ Louisiana Clean Energy Complex, please visit CleanEnergyLouisiana.com. People can also follow the project on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.
At launch, the Fund is making inaugural investments to support the missions of two safety-focused organizations. The Livingston Parish Fire Protection District #2 and the Manchac Volunteer Fire Department will each receive a grant of $400,000 to support their first response missions, facilitating the purchase of new patrol and emergency response boats that will bolster response times and accrue to overall safety for residents, boaters and commercial fisherman on Lake Maurepas.
Air Products is committed to being a good neighbor in Louisiana and in all areas where it operates, and its work through the Lake Maurepas Community Fund and the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex further deepens that commitment.
“Air Products and its employees are committed to improving the Lake Maurepas community for all who spend time on the lake and beyond, through supporting and improving the environment, promoting boater safety, and enhancing educational opportunities in the area,” said Danna LeBlanc, commercial executive director for the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex, chair of the Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund, and a south Louisiana native.
“First response agencies play a critical role in the lake community, and they need to have the best equipment possible to keep our lake safe and healthy. It’s only fitting that the first grants from the Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund are directed toward their missions,” LeBlanc said.
Brian Drury, chief of Livingston Parish Fire Protection District #2, said, “There is no money in our budget to purchase this type of vessel. We would’ve had to ask for a tax to make this happen. We love our community and this donation just enables us to give them more support. It’s another huge step for making it a safer place for everyone to come enjoy our waterways on the weekend – and to live.”
George Coxen, chief of the Manchac Volunteer Fire Department said, “Having more emergency response boats helps us fulfill our volunteer spirit of service to our community around Lake Maurepas and improves our ability to get to a scene to assist our neighbors.”
About the Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund
The Air Products Lake Maurepas Community Fund will be overseen by local community leaders with a deep understanding of Lake Maurepas and the surrounding region, along with key Air Products employees who live and work in the area. As such, all decisions about funding will be firmly rooted in the needs of the community and driven from a local level.
The Fund will support parishes bordering Lake Maurepas by funding needed educational, ecological, and recreational projects for years to come, with a focus on Livingston, St. John the Baptist, and Tangipahoa Parishes. Driving grantee selection, members of the Advisory Committee will assess and recommend potential areas of support for grant opportunities to relevant non-profit organizations that meet Fund criteria and eligibility.
Looking forward, Air Products strives to continue its more than five-decade history of safe and responsible operations in Louisiana, both through its proposed Louisiana Clean Energy Complex currently under development and in future investments. To learn more, visit http://Community.CleanEnergyLouisiana.com.
About the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex
Air Products is developing the Louisiana Clean Energy Complex, which will advance energy independence by creating clean energy at a plant constructed and operated along the Gulf Coast. This $4.5 billion project is Air Products’ largest investment in the United States and will help Louisiana meet its long-term carbon-reduction goals while creating and supporting local jobs.
The new facility will create 170 new jobs with an average salary of $93,000 a year and 2,000 construction jobs. Currently, Air Products employs 330 people in Louisiana at 18 facilities across the state, with employees actively contributing to the communities where they live and work.
For more detailed information about Air Products’ Louisiana Clean Energy Complex, please visit CleanEnergyLouisiana.com. People can also follow the project on Facebook, X, and LinkedIn.