Wyandotte VFW gets new solar panels New additions impressively reduces monthly electric bill

DAVE GORGON

Monthly electric bills at the Wyandotte Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall have gone from thousands of dollars a month to hundreds of dollars a month, thanks to new solar panels installed at the post.

The energy-savings panels are compliments of the veterans-support group Running to Honor, which is headed by Wyandotte VFW member Aaron Bartal, a Lincoln Park resident who spent six years in the Army as a calvary scout, including two years in Iraq.

Bartal raised the needed funds over a four-year period by hosting 5K runs in Taylor, through donations and via corporate grants from the likes of the DTE Foundation and BASF. The installation was completed in the fall of 2022 and the post has reaped the benefits since.

VFW Post 1136 is located at 633 Ford Avenue (known as Northline Road west of Fort Street). Bartal said Running to Honor targeted the energy bills at the post when he learned the post was paying $2,000 a month for electricity.

“The project was broken up into four phases (one per year) since we couldn’t afford the whole project up front,” he said. “2022 was the fourth year and the money from the Running to Honor 5K was able to finally finish off the project, which had a total cost of $130,000.”

Bartal said he worked with Cresit Energy of Wyandotte. The company installed a 40- kilowatt system consisting of 133 solar panels.

“I had to find a company with a good reputation to purchase them through and install them,” he said “Cresit has installed many of the solar panels in the City of Wyandotte already. They were very flexible with trying to give me a good price since the Wyandotte VFW is a nonprofit and they knew we were struggling with our electricity bills.

In addition to reducing the monthly bills from $2,000 to $200 a month, Bartal said, “every month we get a credit on our electricity bill from the city of Wyandotte as well as we are able to sell some of the unused electricity from our building back to the city.”

Post Commander Brian Martin called the savings for the post “great.”

“For the most part, they have dramatically decreased our electricity bill,” he said. “Our electricity bills are down to nothing.”

Martin said the post faced high electric bills due to expansive refrigeration costs brought on by a lengthy walk-in cooler, two ice machines, a keg cooler, a deep freezer, a triple-door refrigeration unit in the hallway and six air-conditioning units on the roof. “We’re running all that stuff in the summertime,” he said. “Our bill was easily $2,000. On the high end, if the solar panels are working correctly, we’re looking at a $500 electricity bill.”

Martin said the return on investment (ROI) has been quick and impressive. He said a typical homeowner or business owner that installs solar panels may be looking at 17 years to break even, while the post has seen great savings already.

Running for Honor selects different veterans-related charities and projects to fund.

Registration is under way for this year’s 5K run and walk, which is scheduled for July 29. The event draws hundreds of competitors – including many veterans and current military – to Taylor’s Heritage Park, located at 12111 Pardee Road.

“This year’s theme is mental health awareness and veteran suicide prevention,” Bartal said. “We will be donating some of the proceeds to Victory Gym in Brownstown and the Taylor VFW.”

The Victory Gym Veterans Health Club is dedicated to conquering PTSD through physical fitness, support and camaraderie.

Bartal said that on average 20 to 22 military veterans “are losing their battle with PTSD every day and deciding to take their own lives. We are hoping by focusing on this very important topic that we can educate others about the importance of keeping in touch with veterans in your family and community and provide tips on how to make sure your veterans are doing OK.”

The fifth annual Running to Honor 5K is a timed, family-friendly run/walk focused on keeping the memory of fallen soldiers and veterans alive “and reminding others that freedom is never free,” Bartal said.

The start time of the 5K and a one-mile walk/run is 8 a.m. in front of the Sheridan Center Open-Air Pavilion. A kids half-K will start at 7:30 a.m.

To register, visit the Running to Honor website or Facebook page. Those who register before June 22 will be guaranteed a black participant T-shirt.

The overall and masters male and female 5K winners receive a challenge coin and a special gift. Age group award challenge coins are given to the top three finishers in each 5K category.