As you know, the Building and Grounds Committee has been exploring the possibility of shifting the Fellowship’s energy source to solar panels. After looking at proposals from a couple of different contractors, and having discussed the matter with the Finance Committee and the Board, we have finally signed a contract with NOVA Consultants, Inc. to install solar panels on our roof. Most of the panels will be on the RE wing and not noticeable to anyone without a long ladder or an airplane. But a third of them will be mounted on the south-facing side of the sloped roof over the Sanctuary, and those should be visible from the parking lot. Look for them in March, when, we hope, the installation will take place.

The electricity we generate with these panels will come directly into the fellowship, and during a good part of the year, should be enough to meet our energy needs. In fact, we will sometimes generate more than we need, in which case the extra kilowatt hours will go to the grid, and Consumers Power will give us credits to offset our power bill during the months when we are producing less than we need and have to buy power from the grid. We expect to save something in the neighborhood of $2,000 a year on our utility bill.

Of course, in addition to the financial savings it provides, solar power will also reduce our carbon footprint, in keeping with our belief that we have a responsibility to our planet and to all who live on it, to protect our environment in whatever ways we can.

The total cost of the project is $37,278. However, there is a federal incentive program that reimburses 30% of the cost of solar panel installations. So our net cost will be only $26,095. Our endowment will pay for a chunk of this. Some individual members have also offered to contribute financially to the project. If you would like to make a contribution, please write a check payable to the UUFoM, with “Solar Panel Project” in the memo line and slip it into the donation box under the chimes. Like Public Radio, we are happy to accept any amount you feel comfortable in giving, from five dollars to fifty dollars to five hundred dollars.

If you have any questions about this project, please ask Judith Hill, or Jim Crissman, who knows a whole lot more about the technology than I do. 

We are very excited about this opportunity to live our values. We hope you will be also.

Judith Hill
Building and Grounds Co-Chair