The 19th Annual Taste of Soul Family Festival is set for Saturday, Oct. 19, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., along Crenshaw Blvd., from Obama Blvd to Stocker Ave. It takes a multitude of individuals and agencies to successfully present the largest street gathering on the West Coast. One of the premier sponsors of Taste of Soul is SoCalGas and Community Relations Manager Crystal Williams shares about the organization’s involvement.
Why does SoCalGas support Taste of Soul?
The Taste of Soul is an annual family-friendly festival that celebrates Black culture and community. SoCalGas has been a proud sponsor of the Taste of Soul (TOS) event for many years. TOS is Los Angeles’ largest one-day street festival that attracts roughly 350,000 attendees and 150 vendors.
Supporting local community events, celebrating food, music, culture and traditions, is one way in which SoCalGas’ employees forge connections and ties with the diverse communities we have served for more than 150 years.
What are 1-3 messages SoCalGas hopes to share with the public via Taste of Soul?
SoCalGas offers many helpful programs and services that benefit customers, including rebates for energy-efficient appliances, assistance programs for customers with limited income or special medical needs, safety and emergency response services, and bill payment options. We even provide rebates and offerings for our business customers as well.
We offer meaningful and fulfilling career opportunities – with positions ranging from our field service technicians to our call center representatives, to positions in engineering, accounting and finance, and information technologies.
SoCalGas is on a mission to be the cleanest, safest, most innovative energy infrastructure company in North America. We are investing in new technologies and solutions to help
California meet its energy goals.
What are 1-3 ways that SoCalGas is working to improve the public’s everyday quality of life?
In addition to the items mentioned above, SoCalGas also gives back to the communities we serve.
Since 2020, SoCalGas has supported the Restaurant Resilience Fund – helping over 560 independently owned restaurants in its service area! This year, 90 restaurants will receive a $5,000 grant, including the Serving Spoon in Inglewood. Helping independent restaurants sustain and thrive helps create more vibrant communities for us all.
In 2023, SoCalGas invested over $19 million to nonprofits serving the 12 counties in our service area, with a focus on helping to improve safety, environmental sustainability, and social impacts through programs like S.T.E.M. education, scholarships, workforce training and more.
As part of the $19 million donation last year, $4 million provided support in addressing food insecurity through SoCalGas’ Fueling Our Communities initiative. We partnered with 59 organizations throughout our 12 counties to provide meals and groceries to those in need.
Are there any programs or projects that SoCalGas wants the public to know about?
Last year, SoCalGas unveiled its Hydrogen Innovation Experience (H2IE), located in Downey, CA. This demonstration project features a microgrid that could provide enough energy to power 100 homes, and a modular home. The microgrid delivers the electricity to power the home through solar panels and battery storage. The excess solar energy is converted to hydrogen, that is stored in a fuel cell and is blended with natural gas to fuel the gas appliances in the home.
This 80-20 blended fuel, (80% traditional natural gas and 20% green hydrogen), can provide the energy the home needs, at a reduced greenhouse gas footprint. To date, policy makers, community and business leaders, schools and nonprofit groups have toured H2IE to learn about this technology and how it can help California achieve its environmental goals.
To learn more, visit socalgas.com.
