Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church is a modern, multicultural powerhouse. From welcoming the LGBTQ+ community into their congregation to supporting the Black Lives Matter movement to providing food to those in need, Lakeshore is committed to serving the needs of the Oakland community.

Lakeshore’s Hunger Task Force runs a food bank and emergency fund that provides food, clothing, and shelter for community members in need. The Hunger Task Force also raises money each year to provide monetary support to local community agencies that are working on hunger and homelessness. Lakeshore also runs a robust youth program including before and after school services and outdoor programming.

Allison Tanner, Minister of Christian Formation at Lakeshore Avenue says, “Our Hunger Task Force is one of our longest and most meaningful community endeavors in which we meet the needs of the hungry and the homeless. We are a sanctuary congestion which particularly in this time we are taking seriously what it means to welcome the stranger and to be good neighbors and to reach out to those that are being treated unjustly by our country.”

Solar Ambassadors Bring Solar to Lakeshore 

RE-volv’s Solar Ambassadors from the Bay Area helped bring solar to Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church. The RE-volv Solar Ambassador Fellows ran a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to pay for the upfront cost of bringing solar to Lakeshore. The Solar Ambassadors also ran a community engagement campaign to help educate the community about the importance of renewable energy and celebrated the project by hosting a Solar Ribbon Cutting celebration. Throughout the Solar Ambassador Fellowship, Solar Ambassadors learned about solar energy, technology, and finance and gained experience in project management, community engagement, and leadership.  

Going Solar with RE-volv

Lakeshore’s 20 kW solar system will save the church more than $155,000 off the cost of their electricity over the life of the solar system. The church can use their solar savings to invest back into their community-serving programs, including providing more food and necessities to those in need through their Hunger Task Force, investing in their youth programs and more! 

Lakeshore was able to go solar with RE-volv for $0 down through a Power Purchasing Agreement (PPA). As Lakeshore pays back RE-volv for the cost of the solar system over a 20-year period, Lakeshore’s monthly PPA payments will go into RE-volv’s Solar Seed Fund, a revolving fund for solar that we use to bring solar to more community-serving nonprofits across the country. 

Community Support for Solar

This project was made possible through the generous donations from individuals across the country who contributed to the crowdfunding campaign to bring solar to Lakeshore. This solar installation was made possible through the help of Jinko Solar who donated 12 solar panels to this project. A special thanks to Segment who sponsored this campaign at the $5,000 level and to Segment staff who volunteered to help install Lakeshore’s solar system. Thank you to Interfaith Power & Light and Green the Church for your partnership on this project!