Gwendolyn Bailey has lived in her house in the Hollywood Homes neighborhood for nearly 40 years – and her energy bill always fluctuated.
And recently, it kept skyrocketing. Her aging HVAC unit was inefficient, allowing energy to escape through windows.
“Every time I tried to heat the house, I wasn't getting good heat from the heat pump,” Bailey said. “And the AC was just awful.”
She started using only her window units, and only when she was in the room.
Eventually, Bailey sought help and was connected with Dominion Energy’s free assistance program called EnergyShare.
“Earlier this year, she had fallen behind on her energy bill because she was using inefficient space heaters all around her home because her heating system wasn't working,” said program manager Nikki Taylor. “So that ran her bill up very, very high.”
Fast forward to this week, and Bailey said she feels like the “queen of the neighborhood.”
Her home was abuzz Thursday morning with contractors working to clear plant overgrowth, fix a storm door, replace the HVAC system, and prepare the roof for solar panels.
There was also a celebrity appearance from local rappers Pusha T and Fam-Lay. The pair founded the Cousinz music festival happening at Norfolk’s Scope Arena next Saturday, and partnered with Dominion for the project at Bailey’s house.
They said the focus of this “first of its kind” festival is family and wanted to have an impact on the surrounding neighorhood.
“To use our influence to help push things along as much as it can, and hopefully inspire others who aspire to be in positions that we're in, to understand that you never stop reaching back,” Pusha T said.
Fam-Lay added it was gratifying to hear Bailey’s appreciation for the work as it validates their commitment to “lending our names or influence or platforms to something like this.”
Produced with assistance from the Public Media Journalists Association Editor Corps funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.
