In a small town, the school reader board is like the newspaper, a way to connect and communicate with the community. However, at Lind Middle School, it's been years since students and staff have been able to share their full story.
Half of the reader board is broken and missing pieces, forcing the kids in ASB to get creative when it comes to crafting a new message every week. Students use a long pole with a suction cup to remove the letters from the ground to the board. The only problem is the suction cup doesn't hold on to the letters. In fact, it can take up to 45 minutes to put up just a few words.
But not anymore! This past week Avista and Strata Solar surprised ASB students with a check for $10,000 to purchase the new reader board in full. The students already have the board picked out: it's a full-color LED board, measuring 7.5 feet wide and 5 feet tall. Now they can share their message and story with everyone.
And it’s a great way to celebrate a new kind of harvest seeded in Adams County. Nestled between vast rolling wheat fields of Lind, WA you’ll now find 81,700 solar panels sitting on 204 acres of farmland, making Lind, WA home to the largest solar farm in the state. These 28 megawatts of renewable energy is the cornerstone of Avista’s Solar Select program and will provide enough power to meet the needs of about 4,000 households each year.
To help us celebrate this milestone, school children walked from Lind Middle School (1/2 mile, both ways) to take a front-row seat at the ribbon cutting event. They also had the opportunity to shake Governor Jay Inslee's hand. "I'm shaking, so excited," said 8th grader Raegan Snider. Governor Inslee also inspired the students to dream big, saying "They see their future right here." Elected officials and program partners were also in attendance.
Paula Bell, Mayor of Lind, says her town is honored to be home of the solar array. "The future is bright," she added.