Clergy, lay leaders, and the congregation of Second Presbyterian Church, 600 Pleasant Valley Drive, Little Rock, will participate in a groundbreaking ceremony Sunday, March 24, at 12:15 p.m. for a solar array to be installed by Seal Energy, whose representatives also will attend the groundbreaking. Seal Energy Solutions is providing shovels and hardhats for the groundbreaking.
The brief ceremony with a prayer, a scripture reading, and a responsive reading will be held immediately after the conclusion of a worship service in the sanctuary at 12 noon.
A total of 81 solar panels will be installed this spring on a grass median in the south parking lot next to church offices. The solar array will provide energy to the church complex from a renewable source. The solar panels are projected to have an annual production of 38,914 kWh (AC).
“Solar panels are a public witness to our belief in renewable energy and a way to off-set some long-term energy costs, while continuing our church’s identity as a leader in the field of environmental stewardship,” according Rev. Stave Hancock, senior pastor.
The installation also will include an EV charging stations for electrical vehicles. As far as the church is aware, this will be the first EV charging station at a house of worship in Arkansas.
Second Presbyterian Church is a Certified Earth Care Congregation with active Environmental Stewardship Committee. A church-wide Capitol Campaign in 2017 raised funds from members of the congregation designated for a solar installation. Arkansas Interfaith Power & Light donated additional funds to help cover EV station expenses.
In case of bad weather on March 24, the groundbreaking will be held under cover at Second Presbyterian Church.
A blessing of the panels will be held once the solar installation is complete.
Other solar installations at houses of worship in Arkansas include St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, Little Rock; St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church, Little Rock; Grace Community United Methodist Church, Fort Smith; Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, Mountain Home; First Presbyterian Church, Fayetteville; Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Fayetteville; Omni Center for Peace, Justice, and Ecology, Fayetteville; Ferncliff Presbyterian Camp and Conference Center, Little Rock.
Contact: Adam Savacool
Second Presbyterian Church, Little Rock
(501) 227-0000
adam@spplr.org
Contact: Heather R. Nelson
Seal Energy Solutions, North Little Rock
(501) 376-7325, x110
hnelson@sealcorporation.com