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Doing our part to reduce our environmental impact
The Congregational Church of Batavia is proud to announce the Batavia Chamber of Commerce is hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate our church's new solar array! It will be held on Tuesday, November 17, at 4 pm. This event is open to the public.
This celebration and recognition by the Batavia Chamber of Commerce is the result of a two year process. The church began in April 2024 by researching solar companies, investigating the costs and the approval processes required by the city. The permit application was submitted to the City of Batavia and was at first denied. After meetings with city electric department staff, the city administrator and an alderman, and with additional review, the permit was approved. The solar installation was completed at the end of 2025, with additional modifications required. This year, the solar panels became active.
This project was a way of putting our beliefs into action, doing our part to reduce our environmental impact. Please join us in thanking the volunteers who donated their time to this landmark achievement.
Below is an article written by our Rev. Paige Wolfanger about the solar array project.
Celebrating Solar
I believe it was our dear friend Rick Lathrop who first suggested to me that the Congregational Church of Batavia should invest in solar panels. I can’t remember when exactly this was, but I do remember we were standing right outside Paxton Hall. For those of you who didn’t know Rick, he was very involved in not only our Justice and Witness Team, but also in working to express the Christian faith in concrete ways in the world. And to him, solar energy only made sense. “It would reduce our carbon footprint, and be a witness to our values and our faith in this community.” He was right, of course. We can talk all we want about a Biblical theology of creation, but in a time when climate change is manifesting in disturbing ways all around us, action is required.
As we began to talk about the possibility of a Capital Campaign a number of years ago, the idea of installing solar panels on the roof of the church became a major priority for this congregation. We talked about it. We researched it. And before we even started the Capital Campaign, we took a leap of faith by shouldering a loan so that we could make this dream a reality. It turns out there were a lot of hurdles, a lot of red tape, a lot of work to be done. (Many thanks to Karen Kosky, Dave Hummel, and Mark Weiss for digging into a lot of that work.) But it happened. The roof was reinforced, the solar panels were installed, and recently, everything came alive, online and working. (Okay, there are still a few glitches, but those are being fixed.) Our faith has become something we can see, and touch, and use to help make this world a little bit better.
So, we’re going to celebrate the vision, the hard work, the investment of so many that made this minor miracle happen. On Tuesday, November 17 th , at 4:00 PM, there will be an official ribbon cutting ceremony here at church. Because even in a congregation that is over 191 years old, there are still new things to be discovered and explored, new ways to walk in the way of Jesus of Nazareth. Join us on the 17 th if you can for this exciting celebration. And thank you for making it happen.
Written by Rev. Paige Wolfanger
