Sometimes a little competition can do a lot of good.
Last month, three AEP Ohio service centers in Tiffin, Findlay, and Bucyrus turned a simple idea into something bigger: a friendly food-drive competition to support their local communities. By the time it ended, team members had donated more than 900 pounds of food and personal care items to their local Salvation Army food pantries.
A Simple Idea That Sparked a Challenge
The idea started with James Kamphaus, a Business Services Account Manager (pictured above) who wanted to support local food pantries while bringing teams together.
His plan was simple: place donation boxes at each location and see which team could collect the most. Leaders like Eric Walton in Bucyrus and Jeff Cannode in Findlay helped make space in their facilities for the collection boxes, and crews quickly got involved.
“Boxes were dropped off at each location, and our leaders rallied their teams to collect donations,” James said. Soon, the competition was on.
Nearly 1,000 Pounds of Support for Local Families
From January 22 through March 4, employees filled boxes with canned goods, pantry staples and hygiene items. In total, the three service centers collected more than 900 pounds of donations for local Salvation Army food pantries in their communities.
James says it couldn’t have happened without his team. “I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Eric Walton, Jeff Cannode and James McCleese for providing space in their facilities to support this initiative. I also appreciate the dedication of their teams and the staff at each service center for donating their time and effort to give back to the communities we serve.”
And the Winner Is…
The Tiffin Service Center took the top spot this year. Their team collected more than 370 items — nearly 400 pounds of food and supplies. But the real win was the overall impact across all three locations.
“My colleagues and I in Tiffin are delighted to have won the competition and hope our efforts made a positive impact on the community,” James McCleese, a Northeast Line Crew Supervisor in Findlay, said. “A little competition made the effort fun — and motivated everyone to give a little more.”
“I’m very proud of the role James played in getting this food drive started, yet I’m not at all surprised the garages made it such a huge success,” Michael Travis, customer and external affairs manager and James’ supervisor, said. “James and all those who participated care about their communities. This is a common theme as I travel around our territory, and I don’t take for granted how fortunate we are to have these employees on our team.”
Giving Back Is Nothing New
Helping local communities is already part of the culture across these teams.
For the past three years, the Findlay garage has partnered with The Salvation Army during the holidays, helping distribute food boxes and gifts for families through the Angel Tree program.
The work has also included support from the AEP Ohio Foundation, which provided a $3,000 grant to purchase hams for Findlay’s Christmas food boxes. The food-drive competition built on that spirit of giving.
Could This Become a Tradition?
After seeing the results, some crews are already looking ahead. One lineworker even asked if the competition could become an annual event, so they can try to win next year.
Given the response from employees and the gratitude from local food pantries, that idea might just happen…and next time, the competition could grow even bigger.
“Giving back isn’t just something we do occasionally — it’s simply part of who we are,” James said.
