Second Presbyterian Church of Little Rock, AR has been named “C3 Church of the Year” for 2023 by the Christians Caring for Creation Board of Directors. Caring for Creation has been a longtime emphasis at Second Presbyterian, going back to the 1970s when they began cleaning the streets of Little Rock. As time moved on, Second Presbyterian began removing Styrofoam products from the church and purchasing ethically sourced West Rock coffee. In 2009 the church was selected to pilot the Earth Care Congregations program of the PC(USA). They have continued to be certified each successive year as an Earth Care Congregation. In 2014 they were awarded the Faithful Friend Award by Arkansas Interfaith Power and Light.
Years later, Second Presbyterian hosted a ground-breaking Drawdown Conference at their church facility, featuring Katharine Wilkerson, the senior writer of the New York Times bestselling book, Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan to Reverse Global Warming. Every aspect of the conference used recycled materials, locally sourced vegetarian food, and durable plates, tablecloths and glasses. For this and other Creation Care efforts, they were awarded the Restoring Creation Award in 2020 by Presbyterians for Earth Care.
In 2019 Second Presbyterian installed 81 solar panels, producing almost 40,000 kilowatts of power annually. The same year they became the first church in Arkansas to install Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations in their parking lot, funded in part, by a grant from Arkansas Interfaith Power and Light. These charging stations provide energy to electric vehicles at no cost, fulfilling a ministry dream of the congregation.
A pollinator garden was installed on the church’s property in 2021, serving as an example for their members and community to install pollinators at their homes. In 2024, all sanctuary lighting will be replaced with a more efficient lighting system, utilizing on-demand lights to save energy. Additionally, water bottle filling stations will be installed to promote reusable water bottles. An Earth Day Worship Service will be held in April 2024, followed later in the spring with an electric car promotional event.
Ben Kane serves as the senior pastor of Second Presbyterian Church, a congregation affiliated with the Presbyterian Church USA (PCUSA).
You can learn more about the history of Second Presbyterian’s creation care commitment by clicking on: https://www.secondpreslr.org/environmental-stewardship/