Wheaton Church Earns Earth Flag
St. Paul Lutheran Church is the first church in Wheaton to receive the Earth Flag from the DuPage County Board. Grant Eckhoff, DuPage County Board member, will present the Earth Flag to the congregation on Sunday, May 5, during a short ceremony at 12 noon after the 11:00 a.m. service. Kay McKeen, founder and executive director of SCARCE, DuPage County's premier recycling and education organization, will join Wheaton's Mayor Michael J. Gresk in this event celebrating the environmental stewardship efforts of the congregation.
The congregation's committees and volunteers of all ages have worked together to earn the Earth Flag. In the lengthy list of accomplishments are: new windows; new energy-efficient lighting; recycle bins for mixed recyclables throughout the building; collection boxes for eye glasses, household batteries, and cell phones; promotion of gym shoe recycling; the Hope Garden, using organic practices to raise produce for the People's Resource Center; and regular notices in the church's bulletins and newsletters reminding members of ways they can conserve nature's resources.
Tim Suter, president of the congregation, will receive the flag. Melody Eastman, senior pastor, and Mark Williamson, associate pastor, will be part of the ceremony chaired by Marty Findling, a member of the congregation's Earth Ministry Committee.