Buckner Family Pathways® in Amarillo received a $7,500 grant from Xcel Energy Foundation, presented recently at a grantee reception at its downtown Amarillo office. The gift is the latest in a 10-year history of giving to Buckner by the foundation. Over the last decade, Xcel Energy has given $75,000 in support of Buckner ministries.

In attendance at the reception was Adrian Rodriquez, president of Xcel Energy – New Mexico, Texas; Jerilynn Armstrong, senior director of corporate and foundation giving for Buckner International; Melanie Rice, Family Pathways director in Amarillo; and Stephanie Peña, manager of social investments for Xcel Energy – New Mexico, Texas.

This year’s grant will help purchase learning resources for both parents and children participating in the Family Pathways program.

Family Pathways is a residential program to help strengthen single-parent families in crisis. Single parents receive safe, affordable housing and child care while earning a higher education degree and setting inspiring examples for their children.

While pursuing their educational goals, parents in the program develop life skills, receive financial and career coaching, in addition to spiritual enrichment and counseling to help heal from the inside out and achieve their goals long-term.

The goal of the program is to break generational cycles of poverty and set families up for self-sufficiency.

An estimated 35% of single-mother families live below the poverty line and struggle to change their circumstances. Barriers to self-sufficiency faced by parents can become barriers to their children’s success in school and later into adulthood.

“We offer our families hope and provide them with tools to help achieve their God-given potential,” said Melanie Rice, Family Pathways director in Amarillo. “We hear stories of how secure our families feel, and we see how Family Pathways helps them dream bigger and make those dreams come true.”

Xcel Energy has called Amarillo their home for 125 years. Its Focus Area Grant program, “Energizing the Future,” supports nonprofits like Buckner to make a positive impact. Through the program, they support nonprofits who perform in one of three focus areas: STEM career pathways, environmental sustainability and community vitality.

This grant helps support single parents who have historically been marginalized build strength and advance economic prosperity for the entire community.

Interested in transforming your family's future while achieving your educational goals? Apply to the Buckner Family Pathways® program today.