A couple of years ago one of our church members got up in the sharing time on a Sunday morning and said he was interested in investigating options regarding solar energy, and if anybody else was interested, to come and talk with him after the service. Well, there was quite a gathering within a few moments of the Benediction being spoken, and it was quickly decided to get together that evening for an exploratory discussion.
That evening, at another church family's home, a group of around 15 people gathered and talked and laughed and wondered together, a few people offered to do some further research, and our congregation's solar energy initiative was born. One of the ideas at that initial gathering was for us as a community to develop more experience and expertise in this area, thinking that this experience and expertise could become something that we could then offer to our broader community, in hopes of helping to make a positive impact on the environmental awareness and carbon footprint of our community (both our church community, and our town).
Well, a lot has happened, and it seems that vision is being fulfilled. One family has installed a solar installation on the roof of their house (see this post from April 2009 for more details). Other church families who operate a family business have installed a solar installation at their business, and have now become distributers/promoters for the use of this technology especially in farm applications. They held an information event with local farmers a few weeks ago, and interest is growing.
Now there is another information event planned for Thursday, April 22, at 6:30 pm, at the Parkview Auditorium in Stouffville. Come on out, and invite your friends and neighbours!
This event is happening in partnership with Mennonite Central Committee's solar initiative, as Darren Kropf, the MCCO Creation Care Coordinator, has been keeping in touch regarding what's been going on in Stouffville, and how it connects with what MCC Ontario is doing in other communities, and Darren and MCCO are helping to facilitate this event in Stouffville.
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