Congregational Spotlight:  Holy Cross Lutheran, Wheat Ridge

“Going Green” with Gusto!

Here’s a congregation that is taking environmental  stewardship to heart!  They are an inspiration. We don’t expect every congregation to copy everything they are doing,  but it would be a big step if every congregation did one or two of them.

They began last year by replacing disposable coffee cups with washable mugs and using Fair Trade coffee on Sunday mornings.  They then moved on to setting up a congregational recycling program. From there, they have moved on to take the following steps:

 – During Advent, the Earth Stewardship Team at Holy Cross raised nearly $600 for the Mt. Kilimanjaro tree planting project in Tanzania with The Regeneration Project;

– They are using the Earthbound DVD series for one of their adult education offerings, which they rate as excellent;

– They had CoIPL Executive Director Betty Goebel do an “Energy Savers” program; 

– They are planning an “Earth Month” celebration for the weeks leading up to Earth Day and Easter, including: 
     ++ An April 3 presentation and discussion of the ELCA (Lutheran) statement on the environment;
     ++ An April 10 “Eco-Fair” with an exhibit about the congregation’s geothermal project  which was completed about two years ago, various Fair Trade items for sale, a solar energy expert,  a table for CoIPL, and another opportunity for members to contribute to the tree project;
    ++ An April 17 presentation on solar energy
                       
All this activity is the result of the work of their small Earth Stewardship Team.  All it takes is a few individuals with a passion for caring for God’s creation to get an entire congregation moving and making significant changes. 

Who is there in your congregation?  Could it be you?  Call us (303 429 5792) to get connected to a member of the Holy Cross Earth Stewardship Team for more information.

Write and tell us what your congregation has done or is doing, and we’ll include your story in an upcoming issue of our newsletter.