First Lutheran Commits to Caring for God’s Creation, Step by Step Garrison Keillor portrays the Lutheran as someone who looks at their shoes when they are talking to you because they are so modest.  Sort of in keeping with that funny stereotype First Lutheran in Decorah has quietly been going about caring for creation in a big way. It’s not splashy, it’s not showy, in fact you can hardly even see the changes, but First Lutheran has been gradually reducing the amount of energy it takes to heat, cool and light their congregational building, as a way of caring for creation.  Four years ago they began by replacing all 48 of their windows with energy efficient windows,in two stages. Then they tackled the doors, replacing most and repairing the weatherstripping around a few. Next they changed over their lighting in stages to compact fluorescent light bulbs.  And recently they had an energy audit done through their electricity provider, Alliant, that was free and very comprehensive. The energy auditor had several suggestions for further action. •    Insulate the cinder block walls by framing in, installing foam batting insulation and dry walling •    Replace the behemoth boiler with three small efficient boilers •    Re-plumb the hot water lines to allow for controlling heat in zones •    Install new programmable thermostats Estimates for the project, including the windows that were already installed, will total approximately $300,000. The green team and building committee will be proposing the project at their February congregational meeting. They hope to have a capital campaign starting next year, asking congregants to pledge over a three-year period, to complete the project in stages and to pay as they go. Pastor Steven Jacobsen says, “We are sure that we will not see pay back for more than 25years but we are committed to the care of God's creation and are aware that the energy efficiency of our building is a testimony to our commitment to be good stewards of God's gifts.  We hope that the work we do on our church property will encourage others in our community to make the same leap of faith.” Associate Pastor Marian Jefferson shows off the new windows and doors. Lighting in the Fireside room is much better now with the new light fixtures.