Direct Energy Honours Alberta Community Heroes through Volunteer Citizen of the Year Award

Group 1 - Direct Energy and the Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association announced the recipients of the 2025 Direct Energy Volunteer Citizen of the Year Award, recognizing their outstanding community service with a $5,000 donation to each recipient's chosen nonprofit organization [1][5] - The Volunteer Citizen of the Year Award has been recognizing individuals for meaningful contributions to their communities through volunteer work since 2004, with this year's program expanded to Calgary and Edmonton, receiving hundreds of nominations from across Alberta [2][5] - The recipients include Abbie and Glen Warren, who have volunteered at A Safe Place since 2009, Daniel Lauper, who has dedicated over 20 years to the Linden & District Agricultural Society, and Peter O'Brien, who has committed up to 25 hours a week to the Bow Valley SPCA following personal loss [2][3][4] Group 2 - Direct Energy is one of North America's leading retail providers of energy and energy-related services, part of NRG Energy, a Fortune 500 company operating in the U.S. and Canada [5] - NRG Energy focuses on delivering innovative solutions for homes and businesses while advocating for competitive energy markets and customer choice [5] - The Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association represents 85 community newspapers across Alberta and the Northwest Territories, with a combined circulation of over 600,000 [6][7]