Myers Park Baptist Church, Charlotte

Myers Park Baptist Church
1900 Queens Rd  Charlotte, NC 28207
Contact: Kate Green, greenkat1@bellsouth.net

Myers Park Baptist Church, Charlotte dedicated their 5 kW system on October 2, 2011 in a ceremony after worship services. A church Energy Committee, created at the request of their Earthkeepers Group learned about a matching grant using federal stimulus funds that was administered through the State Energy Office and applied for the funds in the fall of 2009.

In order to make their grant application more attractive to the state, the church proposed putting a display in their Learning Center that tells people about energy and carbon savings generated by the solar system. They also proposed conducting quarterly classes on energy related topics in their Learning Center. The Committee simultaneously began the process of educating their faith community about the value of solar and moving the process through the proper administrative channels at the Church.

The grant was awarded early in 2011, and the Earthkeepers had no difficulty in raising the matching funds, although the project was scaled down in size due to the economic downturn. The solar system was installed in August 2011, and has been producing clean energy from the sun since then. The system was placed on the Learning Center, and is supplying electricity directly to the Church through a behind the meter installation, thus saving directly on energy costs. The donors will receive a proportional share of their donation as a tax credit on their North Carolina tax returns and a take the donation as a contribution on their federal tax return.