Ice House heats up fundraising efforts
To give people a sense of how it feels to come home to a cold house and to raise funds for heating assistance, the Washington Area Fuel Fund—created 36 years ago by Washington Gas and The Salvation Army—opened its second annual WAFF Ice House in mid-January.
This year’s event, held at a Washington, D.C., waterfront area called The Wharf, raised nearly $145,000 that—due to generous sponsors, including the American Gas Association—went directly to heating assistance for struggling families. Eligible families could receive up to $500 in help.
“There’s no better way to draw attention to people living in homes without heat than to build a house out of ice,” Kelly Caplan, community and WAFF manager at Washington Gas/WGL, told American Gas. “Visually, it helps people connect with families who struggle to pay their bills, and it’s a great teachable moment for parents to talk with their children about families in need.”
Washington Gas customers have long been checking the box on their utility bill that indicates a donation to WAFF. About five years ago, WAFF decided to promote the heating assistance program to the general public, she said.
Caplan got the idea for building the WAFF Ice House from the National Energy and Utility Affordability Coalition, where she is a board member.
“This is innovative, interesting and different,” she said. “Everyone loved the idea from the beginning.”
The several hundred visitors who stopped by the Ice House could sit on the ice sofa; visit with the local celebrities, WGL executives and sponsor representatives on hand; and have their picture taken with a thermal camera that registered their body heat.
Last year’s Ice House fundraiser brought in an extra $130,000 and allowed WAFF to help at least 200 additional families, Caplan said. In total, WAFF provided $1.4 million in heating assistance to 8,000 families last year.
Each year, WAFF pays for all types of home heating fuel for people in financial need. The Salvation Army disburses the funds through its 12 offices in the metropolitan region, while Washington Gas pays administrative, promotional and fundraising expenses.
This year’s 10-foot-by-20-foot ice house, built of 98 blocks of ice, was double the size of last year’s Ice House and drew double the number of sponsors, Caplan said. The house was created by local ice sculpting company Ice Lab.