Meet Neisha Butler, our 53rd grant winner! Neisha is a long-time member of our local sustainability movement and a founding member of the Sustainable Tompkins Mini-Grants Council. She and her young son currently reside in Groton and until recently, had been heating their home with propane for the past 10 years. Fortunately, her house was already well-insulated, so all she needed to do to green her home was get off propane. Neisha’s monthly bills had been very expensive and unpredictable year to year — so she was ready to make the switch and reached out to Halco for some help. Already informed by her sustainability history and with the guidance of CCE Tompkins, Neisha closed the deal on a new high-efficiency air-source heat pump system. Halco connected her with our Climate Fund and HeatSmart grants and the state and utility incentives. Since the installation, she has been so reassured to know what to expect with her now-consistent bills, especially during the brutal winter of 20-21. Neisha’s been comfortable in her home with steady temperatures and has now educated herself on more ways to save energy and money in her home. We were so happy to help Neisha switch off of propane – removing 42 tons of CO2 – with a $3,057 combined Climate Fund and Heatsmart grant. She said she will be “forever grateful” for all the help in transitioning off fossil fuels.