Stefanie Spear, a resident of Chagrin Falls, owner of Expedite Renewable Energy and founder of EcoWatch, got her essay, “Why I’m Going To Washington” (posted here on Green City Blue Lake – a great NE Ohio blog) published in both the Chagrin Valley Times (with the headline, “Clean air is paying off”) and in the Chagrin Solon Sun (with the headline, “Clean Air Act has benefitted small-business owners and economy”) this week. Although it’s not available at the websites of either of those long-time local publications, they did print the piece in full and so you can read it, in full, at the Green City Blue Lake link above.
After you read some of those links, you will see – this is not pie in the sky stuff about making money from caring about the environment and energy. She is one serious, accomplished doer.
I’m very grateful for Stefanie’s piece because so many times, we – writers especially – feel as though we work in isolation. And while we make contacts all the time, whether online or face to face, still, advocating for hot button issues requires a confidence and a persistence that is sustained by passion but is absolutely fortified by knowing that there are others doing it too.
That’s one of the comforting things about the Moms Clean Air Force. We’re all over the country, we have very different backgrounds, many of us have never met one another. But we share an interest and a desire to get action on that interest. I smile whenever I see advocacy in action – and that’s how I felt when I saw Stefanie’s thoughts in the letter to the editor sections of those two local papers.
I don’t know Stefanie and I’m pretty sure she doesn’t know me, but Green City Blue Lake is very well-known around here as a resource and a passionate advocate for all that’s wonderful about our natural assets in NE Ohio – including the need to preserve them as well as earn from them, as Stefanie describes.
The MCAF blog is replete with links and posts about how we are helping our economy and our lifestyle and our health when we make clean air choices. It really is a no-brainer, especially when the rhetoric about what we’re doing or not doing for the future generations.
Please take time to read Stefanie’s piece and pass it on if you’re so moved. Additionally, don’t forget that the deadline to submit comments on the new Mercury and Air Toxics rule has been extended to August 4. If you haven’t already done so, you have through then to email the EPA and show your support for the rule. And, of course, you can join the Moms Clean Air Force to help fight for clean air for our kids anytime. Every voice counts and is needed. Thank you.
And many, many thank yous to Stefanie for her using her voice and her energy for the future of our energy and clean air.
Do you have a Stefanie Spear in your area?