LEWISTON — When groups of energy-efficiency volunteers hit the streets around the Twin Cities on Oct. 2, chances are they won’t be wearing green tennis shoes.
“This is all about the outreach, about making sure people know what can be done to get their homes ready for winter and what kind of help is available,” said Bruce Damon, the local organizer for the Green Sneakers Project.
Comfortable shoes will be good, but the color won’t matter.
“The fact is, winter is coming, but it’s hard to think about when it’s 80 degrees outside,” Damon said. “We’re sending around people who have good information and some training, who can look at a house and recognize some things can be done.”
A group of 40 volunteers will spread out across Lewiston and Auburn on Oct. 2, focusing mostly on middle-income neighborhoods, Damon said. The effort is targeting neighborhoods with average home values between $100,000 and $200,000, he said.
“The lower-income areas, they can work with other programs,” Damon said. “But this program, you need to have some income to pull it all off, to actually do some of the work. But the goal is to let them know there is help out there.”
Volunteers can sign up to participate at either Lewiston or Auburn public library, at Lamey Wellehan in Auburn or online at www.coolmaine.org/green-sneakers-volunteer.
The Green Sneakers Project is a joint effort of the Sierra Club, Maine Council of Churches, Physicians for Social Responsibility and Cool Communities Maine.
Statewide, the effort hopes to mobilize 150 volunteers to visit 2,000 homes. Each resident they talk to will get a reusable shopping bag with the Green Sneakers logo and information about energy saving, efficiency and state programs.
Locally, Damon said organizers are working with both cities and with students from the Lewiston Regional Technical Center, who will be working with volunteers as part of a service learning project.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
