South Bend nonprofits showcase energy-saving upgrades

CDFI Friendly South Bend helps organizations navigate finance options to sustain both mission and planet

You’ve probably heard that money doesn’t grow on trees. But as the leaders of some South Bend nonprofits might tell you, it can come from the sun.

At least that’s what these mission-minded organizations are banking on, with the help of a new energy savings initiative co-sponsored by CDFI Friendly South Bend.

The Energy Assistance Solar Savings Initiative, or EASSI, helps local nonprofits, schools, and other community organizations make energy efficiency upgrades to their facilities. The cost-saving upgrades might include new heating or cooling systems, windows, or solar installations.

La Casa de Amistad’s new rooftop solar array is part of a larger, $405,000 campaign to implement multiple energy-saving projects throughout the youth and community center’s new home, a recently remodeled 41,000 square foot facility.

The organization expects to see an annual energy savings of roughly $30,000 – an amount that, if financed, would cover the loan payments and position the nonprofit to recoup the investment in just seven years.

Photo courtesy South Bend Office of Sustainability.

Participating organizations expect the upgrades to reduce overall energy costs, freeing up resources for their core mission. And because an organization’s mission may be unrelated to sustainability – for example, La Casa de Amistad’s primary focus is on the empowerment of South Bend’s Latino community – EASSI helps nonprofit organizations navigate what may be unfamiliar territory.

Launched in early 2022, EASSI (pronounced “easy,” of course!) is a partnership between CDFI Friendly South Bend, the City of South Bend, and IFF, a regional CDFI with expertise in the unique needs of nonprofits — and one of several CDFIs in CDFI Friendly South Bend’s network. After a review of initial applications by the City, selected participants receive a free energy assessment of their organization’s facilities, courtesy of IFF. The assessments determine which energy-saving projects make the most sense.

The nonprofit Beacon Resource Center, a multi-purpose space for community organizations on South Bend’s west side, is among the first cohort of EASSI program participants. The Beacon’s building assessment revealed several energy-saving opportunities, such as weatherization, LED lighting, and occupancy sensors.

Thanks to EASSI support, The Beacon is poised to install a 40-kW solar array in 2023 that will yield an annual energy savings of more than $5,000 annually — an investment the nonprofit expects to recoup within thirteen years.

Photo courtesy Riverside Church.

Once a project is greenlit, the program then awards a city-funded matching grant of up to $10,000 — just enough to get most projects going.

But when the price tag of larger energy-saving improvements can top six figures, participating nonprofits may need loans to make up missing funds. That’s when CDFI Friendly South Bend stands ready to help.

“Nonprofit organizations tend to have very unsteady income streams,” notes Sam Centellas, executive director of CDFI Friendly South Bend. That inconsistency explains why many organizations have a harder time obtaining traditional loans – and why nonprofit organizations may be reluctant to seek them. “I think especially for nonprofit organizations, there's always this negative connotation around debt, that having debt in some ways is a bad thing,” Centellas says.

As part of its role in the EASSI program, CDFI Friendly South Bend provides education and technical assistance to help nonprofits understand the flip side of that coin.

“Bad debt is bad,” Centellas admits, “but there is good debt that an organization can take on that can help them either grow, scale, expand their mission and actually help them save money over time.”

EASSI program participants know that energy efficiency and sustainability should be part of any organization’s mission. “Nonprofits want to serve their mission well, and that often means that we're inclined to want to serve the Earth well,” says Kathy Schuth, executive director of the Near Northwest Neighborhood, Inc., a South Bend community development corporation. “From a nonprofit’s point of view, you want to be an example to your community. It’s easily part of our mission,” Schuth says.

If you are (or know) a nonprofit executive who would like to explore creative finance options to improve your organization's energy efficiency and advance your mission sustainably, contact Sam at sam@cdfifriendlysouthbend.org.