Spotlight: El Valor, community partner in Chicago, IL

Solstice • April 19, 2022

With roots in the Hispanic community, El Valor has grown into a multicultural, multipurpose organization that reaches thousands of families throughout the Chicagoland area. Their mission is to support underserved individuals to achieve excellence and participate fully in life, and they are succeeding by creating opportunities that enrich and empower vulnerable populations to become their own advocates. From nutrition classes, craft nights, parent support groups, employment workshops, and puppet shows to classroom services, 24/7 care, and in-home services to families in need, El Valor offers its community a myriad of life-changing programs.

Last year, El Valor partnered with Solstice to deepen the impact they were making on their community. Solar provides critical cost savings as they fight to stretch every penny, giving them funds to improve their facilities. Going solar also helped El Valor live its values of supporting a more sustainable future. In total, El Valor signed up 11 properties for community solar representing a combined equivalent of 666KwH, enough to charge 57,427 smartphones, and earning them $14K in annual savings.

“We’ve really enjoyed our partnership with Solstice. Our goal has always been to support vulnerable populations and act as leaders in social justice. Connecting to renewable clean energy and helping our community members save on their electricity bills meaningfully advances these efforts. Our partnership with Solstice has even enabled us to raise funds for our own initiatives, providing us with added resources to enrich our community members’ lives. We’re putting the added funds and our savings from community solar toward various enrichment opportunities: first aid classes, parenting seminars and advocacy training, family support groups, early childhood education programs, the list goes on. It’s so important for people to see that they can make a difference, and that one organization, and even one person, can stir powerful change. We’re grateful for the positive impact that signing up for community solar has had on us and those who rely on us, and we can’t wait to see the benefits grow year after year.”

–Jillian Gonzalez, Senior Vice President

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