Summer Worship is Sunday at 10AM (through August 2nd).

Creation Care

“The first act of divine revelation is Creation itself” – Richard Rohr

The Creation Care Team of North Decatur Presbyterian Church (NDPC) invites everyone to join us in celebrating the presence of God in all of creation and to continue to work towards a sustainable future for our planet.  Our church-wide activities are focused on reducing our individual and collective footprints on the earth and on advocating for policies and actions that lead to a better life for all of God’s creatures. Please get in touch at [email protected] and join us!

NDPC installed solar panels

SOLAR PANELS

NDPC installed solar panels in 2021 to power our church, fellowship hall, classrooms and our on-site educational institution, Hess Academy. By generating electricity directly from the sun, we have significantly reduced our electric bills and our reliance on fossil fuels. In addition, the money we save on our electric bills is money we spend doing good for our neighbors and our community.

SUSTAINABLE SANCTUARY FLOWERS

In addition to green potted plants, fresh flowers from our members' gardens and our pollinator garden adorn the sanctuary. In this way, we eliminate the use of floral foam, minimize our carbon foot print with our locally grown flowers that are biodegradable and compostable and avoid the spraying of harmful pesticides and herbicides.

LED LIGHTING

Having received two grants from Georgia Interfaith Power & Light, we replaced incandescent bulbs with LED bulbs throughout our church and administrative spaces. As compared to incandescent bulbs, LED bulbs use signifcantly less energy to produce the same amount of light, last up to 25 times longer and produce less heat.

NDPC Green Communion Table

GREEN COMMUNION TABLE CLOTH

During Ordinary Time (the days not marked by a specific cycle such as the Christmas and Easter cycles), the Worship Committee places a hand made cloth on the communion table in the chancel. The cloth was created with hand-stitching, colorful adornments and vibrant green fabrics as a visual invitation to ponder the green and growing time of God's creation.

NDPC Pollinator garden

POLLINATOR GARDEN

Located alongside Medlock Road, our lovingly maintained garden of yarrow, phlox, becky shasta daisy, daylilies, purple cone flower, swamp sunflower and thyme (to name a few) is a stunning oasis for pollinators such as butterflies, bees and hummingbirds. And, even though it is surrounded by concrete sidewalks, a lawn and an asphalt parking lot, our urban garden is a feast for the eyes throughout the year and it provides essential nectar and pollen to declining pollinator populations.

NDPC works with Reloom

RE:LOOM AREA RUGS

At the 11:00 a.m. service, we have a dedicated space and time for children to participate in worship while sitting on beautiful, upcycled rugs woven by local women who have previously struggled to maintain employment. Annually, re:loom successfully converts thousands of pounds of excess textiles from landfills and incinerators into rugs and other products. And, as a low-barrier employment program, re:loom provides women an opportunity to participate in the fast-growing sustainability marketplace.

Advocacy guided by GIPL

ADVOCACY GUIDED BY GIPL

Georgia Interfaith Power and Light (GIPL) "inspires and equips communities of faith to organize, implement practical climate solutions, and advocate across Georgia on issues of climate change, environmental justice, and community resilience." Thus, along with other faith communities, we have participated in advocating and lobbying for policies and laws that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, promote renewable energy sources and protect biodiversity.

NDPC recycles

NDPC RECYCLES

As participants in DeKalb County's recycling program, we recycle paper, cardboard, metal and aluminum cans and #1 and #2 plastic bottles/containers with necks like water and juice bottles. By placing only approved items in the recycling bins and the dumpster, we ensure our recyclables are recovered and reused. Otherwise, contamination of the recyclables with trash can cause an entire load to be rejected and sent to the DeKalb County Seminole Road Landfill. As stewards of God's Creation, we appreciate everyone's efforts to recycle responsibly and help reduce waste.

creation care birdhouse

BIRD NESTING BOXES

We currently have two active bird nesting boxes in the garden - one for Eastern Bluebirds and one for Brown-headed Nuthatches. These charming, beautiful birds have lost much of their natural tree habitat due to development and competition from invasive bird species. Nesting boxes, however, provide a secure, sheltered place for birds to raise their young while eating bugs from our flower gardens. Both of our nest boxes have been up for several years and every year the bluebird box has hosted several clutches while the nuthatch box has always had nests of chickadees and possibly nuthatches.

Brush pile for wildlife at NDPC

A BRUSH PILE FOR WILDLIFE

Parallel to Scott Boulevard, you may notice a brush pile which is simply a pile of fallen branches and other natural materials arranged to provide shelter and habitat for wildlife. The brush pile provides cover for many songbirds and small mammals to nest, rest, raise their young and to be protected from predators and harsh weather conditions. Over time, the decaying wood will attract insects which are an additional source of protein rich food for the birds and small mammals.

NDPC Composts

SUSTAINABLE MANAGEMENT OF FOOD WASTE

Since beginning our composting program in April 2024, we have diverted thousands of pounds of organic food waste from landfills and converted it into the nutrient rich soil amendment known as compost. The compost is then used by our community garden partners to add essential nutrients to the soil and help reduce the need for chemical fertilizers. To participate in this miracle of composting, we simply empty our food scraps (fruits, veggies, coffee grounds, meat, dairy, bones and oils), pizza boxes and BPI Certified compostable cutlery and packaging in the bins provided by CompostNow (and located at NDPC) which processes the organic waste. Since beginning our composting program in April 2024, we have diverted thousands of pounds of organic food waste from landfills and converted it into the nutrient rich soil amendment known as compost.

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