Array paid for by $834,000 grant
Bright November sunshine streamed into Methow Valley United Methodist Church (MVUMC) on Sunday (Nov. 9), but it wasn’t the only solar power bringing light to that morning’s service.
The bulbs in the sanctuary’s vaulted ceiling — and everything else in the building that used electricity — had begun drawing power from 156 solar panels on the church’s south lawn 10 days prior, pastor Leigh Ann Robinson said.
The array, coupled with a battery storage system tucked into a shipping container near a back corner of the church, will afford MVUMC total energy independence during the longest days of the year and enable it to become a resilience hub that will welcome community members during a power outage.
“We are running on solar power!” Robinson exclaimed from the pulpit during the service, to cheers and applause from the congregation.
The celebration on Sunday was the culmination of 18 months or more of preparation, led by Independent Learning Center (ILC) senior Juliana Robinson, who is also the pastor’s daughter.
Juliana, who interns with Michiel “Mac” Zuidweg of MZ Solar Consulting, wrote the $834,000 state Department of Commerce grant that paid for the solar array and battery system. The money also will cover the cost of an electric-vehicle charging station, which will go online in the spring, and a more efficient HVAC system that should be installed by December.
The grant went farther than originally anticipated. The Department of Commerce originally announced it would award the church $667,000 of the $834,000 it had asked for. Later, the agency came back with the news that the church would receive the full award.
During the service, Leigh Ann Robinson acknowledged her daughter, who “worked … to dream the dream of a new future for Methow Valley United Methodist Church as a resilience hub.”
Robinson also thanked the adults who supported Juliana in realizing her dream, including Zuidweg; Mary Jane Perry, who helped with grant writing; and project manager Bob Hunt.
Juliana’s capstone project at the ILC this year will be to create a plan for how the church will operate as a resilience hub during emergencies. The solar-plus-battery system should be more than robust enough to keep the lights and air conditioning on if the power is knocked out by wildfires. The batteries can keep the church powered for two days in the gloomiest winter weather, Zuidweg noted.
The church may be able to feed people during emergencies, too. Thanks to a separate grant, the church under Hunt’s leadership had its kitchen certified as commercial just last week — another big milestone for MVUMC.
“We’ve been working toward this for more years than I’m going to mention,” Robinson told her congregation. (In an interview after the service, she said a commercial kitchen had been discussed among church members for “over 10 years.”)
Juliana plans to invite the public to an “ideation session,” so church officials can learn what community members want from the resilience hub. A date for the brainstorming session will be announced later.
Robinson told her congregation the solar array, the HVAC system and the kitchen were all part of the church’s plan “to serve our community in bigger and deeper ways.”
“Hold on for the ride because it’s going to be a good one, and it’s going to be exciting,” she said.
