Calvary Lutheran Church Works to Better the Environment

On Sunday, September 15th, Calvary Lutheran Church held a Climate Fair as part of the ELCA’s “God’s Work. Our Hands” national day of service initiative. Attendees from the church and community had the opportunity to learn, serve, and commit to caring for God’s earth. Church members collected and packaged 707 donated pairs of worn shoes to help combat global poverty through the “Soles 4 Souls” non-profit. They also collected 1,400 plastic bags to recycle, preventing them from polluting water ways and green spaces here in Union County. Re-usable bags were given to each attendee who turned in 25 plastic bags. Families calculated their carbon footprints, and got a checklist of actions they could take to reduce it. You can go to https://www.conservation.org/carbon-footprint-calculator#/ to calculate your own carbon footprint. Young children made biodegradable seed paper to plant as a fun way to learn and take action. Some attendees received free compost bins. Those at the fair also watched “A Matter for Degrees”, a short film on climate change produced by The Wild Center in Lake Tupper, New York. You can see the film at https://wildcenter.org/degrees/. Perhaps most importantly, Calvary’s members committed to making positive change when it comes to environmental and climate concerns. The church plans to continue “Taking Care of God’s Earth” throughout the upcoming year, and will use the theme in Worship and Sunday School.