Green Team member Jim L. invites Keystone members and friends to come to a lecture by David Domke, professor and former chair of the Department of Communications at UW, on Friday, Nov. 6, at 5 p.m. called “Three days after ‘Election Day’: What happened? Where do we go from here?” Domke will look at some data, unpack the election crisis if it’s occurring, and talk about where we’re going from here. This event will be a little bit of lecture and a lot of Q and A. No registration needed but you will need the Zoom link. Contact Jim or Pastor Lauren or Pastor Yuki to get the link.
UCC News: Week of August 31, 2020
The UCC is pairing up with Interfaith Power & Light to present the webinar: Children and Youth Speak: Your Vote Matters at 12 p.m. PDT/3 p.m. CDT on Saturday, Sept. 19. With the climate crisis and the struggle against inequality, the younger generations have served as today's prophets in provoking a global reckoning of the dire situation faced. As the November 3rd elections approach, children and youth are raising their voices again with a moral urgency as they awaken us to how much is at stake. This webinar will present children and youth from ages 10 to 18 who have a message and perspective that needs to be heard before those older than them vote. Guest panelists will include:
● Aaron Collins Anderson, Immanuel Spring United Church of Christ in Spring, Texas
● Elijah Chhin-Lawrence, Immanuel Spring United Church of Christ in Spring, Texas
● Caleb DeBerry, Vote16USA
● Isaiah Mason, Spring Glen Church in Hamden, Connecticut
● Evie McBride, Church of Christ at Dartmouth College
● Rishi Ranabothu, NC Interfaith Power and Light’s Youth Leaders Initiative
● Kate Roney, National Children's Campaign
This webinar is co-hosted by the Rev. Dr. Brooks Berndt of the United Church of Christ Environmental Justice Ministry and the Rev. Michael Malcom of Alabama Interfaith Power & Light and the People's Justice Council.
Sign-up now to join the webinar! Even if you can't make its scheduled time, still sign-up, and we will send you a recording of it.
Keystone Solar Update
Christian Townsdin has been Keystone’s lead force-of-nature in our solar panel project, and this week he will offer an update on it, including some numbers from one installer, Sun Path. According to Christian:
“20.78 kW of solar will fit nicely on our roof, providing 103% of our estimated current needs.
“Our investment of $41,507 now is estimated to profit us by over $70,000 over the next 30 years. Yes, you read that right, we pay off the panels in 15 years, and then go on to make more than we paid for them in the next 15 years. … The basic reason it's such a good investment is that the cost of electricity generally rises by about 4% a year. If that were to continue, we've bought the ability to make most of the electricity we need now and will benefit from that over time.
”Financial benefits aside, this is the right thing to do. It's the right thing to do because our time to mitigate the most serious negative effects of climate change (global warming) is running very very short. We have the money, we can do this, and we can set an example of our values and the right way forward for the community.”
You can read more about the installer, Sun Path, and their estimates for Keystone’s solar panels in this PDF. Christian & team will be announcing our latest total Sunday! Come to online worship to hear Christian’s 5 minute presentation about the solar project on Sunday July 19. Christian will talk about the project, its costs and benefits, and show a thermometer with our current value, as we keep this moving!!
The solar panel fund-raising is going now, and you can contribute to the fund. You can send a check marked “solar panels” to the church office or donate by clicking on the button below and choosing “Solar Panel Project” in the box that says “(Optional) Use This Donation For …”