LOS ANGELES, Nov. 17, 2017 —Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) will be the top team fundraiser and have the most participants of any team for the fifth year in a row at United Way of Greater Los Angeles’ (United Way) HomeWalk 2017. The event is an annual 5K family run/walk that raises public awareness and funds to help end homelessness in Los Angeles County.  

Nearly 850 members of Team SoCalGas have raised nearly $95,000 for this year’s HomeWalk, which will take place at 8 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 18 at Grand Park in Downtown Los Angeles. The funds will directly support United Way’s mission to end homelessness for individuals, veterans and families in Los Angeles County, where more than 57,000 people are now homeless.

"We’re proud that so many SoCalGas employees and their families and friends, as well as the company’s partners, participate in the United Way’s efforts to fight homelessness in Los Angeles County," said Lisa Alexander, vice president of customer solutions and communications at SoCalGas and United Way board member. “We believe everyone deserves a place to come home to, and we are pleased to join United Way, the City of Los Angeles and the County of Los Angeles in the fight to eradicate homelessness.”

SoCalGas employees, along with their family and friends, and the company’s partners have supported HomeWalk every year since its inception in 2006.

“HomeWalk is the only 5K family run/walk dedicated to ending homelessness in L.A. County, and SoCalGas has been there every step of the way,” said Elise Buik, President and CEO of United Way. “Over the past ten years, HomeWalk has mobilized over 85,000 people and raised enough funds to move 18,000 individuals, families and veterans off the streets and into housing. But it’s still going to take an amazing feat to end homelessness, and we couldn’t do it without the incredible support of local businesses and community members, like SoCalGas.”

About SoCalGas

Headquartered in Los Angeles, SoCalGas® is the largest natural gas distribution utility in the United States, providing clean, safe, affordable and reliable natural gas service to 21.7 million customers in Central and Southern California. Its service territory spans 22,000 square miles from Fresno to the Mexican border, reaching more than 550 communities through 5.9 million meters and 101,000 miles of pipeline. More than 90 percent of Southern California single-family home residents use natural gas for home heat and hot water. In addition, natural gas plays a key role in providing electricity to Californians—about 60 percent of electric power generated in the state comes from gas-fired power plants.  

SoCalGas has served communities in California for 150 years and is committed to being a leader in the region’s clean energy future. The company has committed to spending $6 billion over the next five years to modernize and upgrade its gas infrastructure, while also reducing methane emissions. SoCalGas is working to accelerate the use of renewable natural gas, a carbon-neutral or carbon-negative fuel created by capturing and conditioning greenhouse gas emissions from farms, landfills and wastewater treatment plants. The company is a subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE), a Fortune 500 energy services holding company based in San Diego. For more information visit socalgas.com/newsroom or connect with SoCalGas on Twitter (@SoCalGas), Instagram (@SoCalGas) and Facebook. 

About United Way Greater Los Angeles 
United Way of Greater Los Angeles is a nonprofit organization fighting to end homelessness and poverty by providing students with support needed to graduate high school prepared for college and the workforce, providing housing for our homeless neighbors, and helping hard-working families become financially stable. United Way identifies the root causes of poverty and works strategically to solve them by building alliances across all sectors, funding targeted programs and advocating for change. For more information, visit www.unitedwayla.org.