Located in Shelburne Falls, Massachusetts, Trinity Church is a mission-oriented congregation of faith, deeply dedicated to resilience and broader community collaboration. Hurricanes and heavy rain caused flooding from the nearby Deerfield River in the past, leading environmental justice and sustainability to be a high priority in the area. The Trinity Church congregation lives out their faith through contributing to environmental disaster preparedness and greater community resilience. They identified energy-saving opportunities to support their mission and took action to improve energy efficiency, update their heating system with heat pumps, install a commercial-grade generator, and offer greater support to the broader community.
As the surrounding towns, Shelburne and Buckland, are increasing weather preparedness, local community groups are joining to build a network of community resilience. Not only does Trinity Church open its doors to provide these groups with meeting spaces, but it aims to become an emergency hub for those in need — offering shelter, energy, and food.
Through various congregation-led projects and outside programs, Trinity Church has accomplished several impactful steps toward their goal of climate resilience and clean energy.
To become a true community emergency hub, Trinity Church is currently working with the broader community and municipality to install a commercial-grade generator. This will allow the church to keep its doors open when the power goes out and provide electricity and heating/cooling to anyone in need, furthering their mission of caring for others.
Trinity Church serves a mission to Gather as God's people to Grow in faith, love, and service, and to Go into the world as disciples. This mission is lived through their dedication to Whole Community approaches and being part of collective action to build climate resilience and improve disaster readiness, response, and recovery. Moreover, congregation members run an active Creation Care team, volunteer to care for their Memorial Garden, and collect used clothes to donate and reduce unnecessary waste.
Trinity Church hopes other congregations will collaborate with their local organizations and groups to better support and serve the whole community of their area. Through creating a network of groups oriented around a shared mission, incredible work can be accomplished towards justice for all of Creation.
"There is no reason not to do it, and every reason to go for it. There's always more that you can do and people waiting to support you in living out your faith."
— Rev. Benjiman Durfee
Eliot Church in Newton transformed its historic 1845 building into an ENERGY STAR®–certified, solar-powered, highly efficient facility, cutting energy use and carbon emissions by over 40% while engaging its congregation and community in climate action and advocacy.
Since 2011, St. Brigid's Parish in Lexington has cut its carbon footprint and energy costs sharply, lowering heating expenses by more than 50%, reducing emissions by 53 metric tons a year, and saving $32,000 annually through insulation, efficient lighting, and cleaner heating systems.
Holy Trinity replaced its failing 1950s radiant heating system with modern high-efficiency boilers, smart zoning, and new in-floor radiant piping, cutting heating costs by 40%, reducing water use, and greatly improving comfort and reliability.
