Taking care of creation is among the fundamental principles upheld by the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Berks County located in Reading.
In order to achieve this, the congregation proceeded with a proposal to place solar panels on the rooftop of their church location at 416 Franklin Street. This initiative aimed to lessen their environmental impact. As stated by Frank Wilder, who serves as a member of both the ministry and operations boards, they finished the initial stage of their project back in April.
The church fitted a 40-panel, 19.4-kilowatt photovoltaic system on the back rooftop, which led to the production of approximately 19.5 megawatt-hours of power within the last year. This initiative cut down the church’s carbon emissions by about 14 tons and fulfilled all of its electrical requirements, as stated by Wilder.
Over 20 individuals participated in a project tour organized by PennEnvironment, a statewide environmental advocacy organization, last week.
“By adopting solar power, numerous congregations are practicing their beliefs as caretakers of the Earth by contributing to environmental preservation,” stated Hanna Felber, an organizer with PennEnvironment.
Felber pointed out that more than 1,250 places of worship across the country have added solar panels.
On Thursday, April 10, 2025, Hanna Felber, who organizes for PennEnvironment, addresses attendees during an inspection of the solar panel setup at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Berks County located at 416 Franklin Street, Reading. The photograph was taken by BILL UHRICH from the READING EAGLE.
Bethany Ayers Fisher, who works as the sustainability manager for the city of Reading, praised the church’s initiatives to modernize the structure from 1891 along with their involvement in the Reading for 100 resolution adopted by City Council in 2019 aimed at transitioning all energy sources to renewable resources by 2050, completely phasing out fossil fuels.
“For numerous years and across multiple generations, this congregation has worked hard to be responsible caretakers of both this building and the city of Reading,” Ayers stated.
Senator Judy Schwank highlighted the severe local weather occurrences attributed to climate change.
“We’ve witnessed unprecedented flash flooding in Berks County and across Pennsylvania,” she stated.
Schwank mentioned that solar energy could play a significant role in addressing climate issues.
“We have a long way to go in order to reach our clean energy goals, but I think every accomplishment along the way is worth celebrating,” she said.
The Unitarian Universalist Church aims to expand upon the success of this first installment.
The church intends to add a battery storage system as part of its second phase project, aiming ultimately to replace its old gas-powered furnaces with energy-efficient electric heat pumps driven by 96 solar panels, according to Wilder.
“These steps embody our core principles and our duty to nurture the planet we all inhabit,” he stated.
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