TURNER PUBLISHING • January 22, 2021
Good Shepherd Food Bank recently installed a solar array to generate on-site power to help refrigerate perishables while reducing emissions from regional fossil fuel plants. A total of 1,735 solar panels are in place and fully operational at both Auburn (895 panels) and Hampden (840 panels) distribution centers. Thanks to community solar investors Fritz and Susan Onion, who paid for the panels, Good Shepherd Food Bank is able to purchase the electricity generated by the solar panels on its properties in Auburn and Hampden at a below-market rate, realizing energy cost savings immediately without the upfront capital investment. Years down the road, the food bank will have the option to buy the panels at a depreciated cost to generate its own electricity for the long term.