Berea Mennonite Church Receives Matching Grant

John Weirwille, pastor at Berea Mennonite Church, applied for and received a matching grant of $2,190 to upgrade their attic insulation to a R30 value and to install LED exit signs throughout their buildings.  Energy cost saving following implementation of the approved projects is estimated at $1,000 per year.

Berea Mennonite Church is a congregation of the Mennonite Church USA. Its community was started in Kirkwood in 1952 as the first racially integrated congregation in Georgia. They moved to their current location on six acres of mostly wooded land at 1088 Bouldercrest Road SE, Atlanta in 1974.

Berea has a history of community gardening and jumped in fully last year, hiring a full-time farmer and tilling up the churchyard to plant more than half an acre of vegetables. Their efforts are now supported by a community-supported agriculture (CSA) arrangement with twenty-five local shareholders. Through leasing, they plan to more than double the size and production of their farm next year and look to add many more programs to reach into the East Atlanta community.

Berea also has a pre-K that uses the farm and woods as a classroom every day. They often gather outside for worship and other fellowship events to celebrate the good gifts God has given to them in this part of the creation. They are also very interested in further improving their stewardship of the land through alternative sources of energy and greater efficiency efforts.

Berea Mennonite Church was one of six congregations that were awarded a total of $52,000 in Energy Improvement Matching Grants in November 2010.  The next round of Matching Grants applications must be received by May 15, 2011.  Up to $25,000 is available to congregations interested in implementing suggestions from their Power Wise Energy Audits to reduce energy consumption and costs.