POWERGRAMS

9 CHAPTERS' SNACKS, BACKPACKS EASE BURDEN FOR MANY There's nothing like a peanut butter cracker to calm those familiar rumblings of hunger. So says Mary Southern. The 69- year old knows from experience, particularly after chemotherapy. Following her weekly visit to Montgomery Cancer Center for ovarian and lung cancer, Southern is nauseated after the one- to two-hour treatment and needs dry crackers to settle her stomach. On a recent morning, Southern was happily surprised when a nurse offered her a snack. Southern quickly ate the peanut butter crackers, then saw a typed note: "Gift of Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO)." "Sometimes it's so early when I get there, and I don't get a chance to eat breakfast," said Southern, a Tallassee resident. "I love the snacks. I was touched by this." So impressed was Southern by the thoughtfulness of people she'd never met, she hand-delivered a thank- you note to the company's Tallassee Office. "I wanted to say thank you so much to Alabama Power," Southern said. PROVIDING HELP TO THOSE WHO NEED IT Members of APSO are always seeking ways to help others and make a positive impact on their communities, said Charitable Giving Specialist Tan Grayson. "Our members are so caring," said Grayson, who has been APSO coordinator since 2012. "This is just one of so many examples of how our employees serve and make life better for people, helping residents across Alabama." Hailey Frederick McElroy, Southern Division APSO's president last year, said the cracker idea came naturally to her. Three years ago she was diagnosed, through genetic testing, with inherited immunoglobin G (IgG), a deficiency that makes it easier for illnesses to invade the body. "It literally took me years to figure out what was wrong," said McElroy, the recent mother of fraternal twin girls, Emma and Erin. "I'm 29, and I'd get pneumonia a couple of times a year." McElroy began receiving intravenous therapy that lasts four or five hours each month at the Montgomery Cancer Center. "One day, as I sat there waiting for my name to be called, I couldn't help but notice the people around me," said McElroy, whose mother goes with her to treatments. "My heart sank as I looked around, seeing people much sicker than me. However, they still managed to smile through the pain. Some had family members by their side for support, but most sat alone, no one to talk to, no one to provide snacks or drinks By Donna Cope Southern Division APSO members fill snack baggies for cancer patients. APSO Photo by Wynter Byrd

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