When Travis Easterlin was laid off last July, he took it as a sign that it was time to do what he’d always wanted. Easterlin and his wife Katie put their heads together to set up their own fishing charter. In early April after nine months’ planning, the husband and wife team officially launched Georgia Bight Charters.
“Basically, our five-year plan became our right-now plan,” said Katie Easterlin. “We were able to use some of the stimulus money to pay for business start-up costs, so the timing of everything was a positive push towards our dream.”
With 15 years’ experience as a boat captain, Travis Easterlin wasn’t new to the sea or the regulations governing it. He renewed his captain’s license, obtained a fishing license from Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and got certified in CPR.
Logue gives credit to his predecessor for blazing the trail in making the energy switch possible.
“Scott Benhase, who was in my position previously, did all the research on what it would take to get solar working on the building,” said Logue. “In that process he found the (Solar) Moonshot Program grant, and that changed everything.”
The Solar Moonshot Program, managed by Hammond Climate Solutions, awards grants up to $25,000 to nonprofits to convert to solar power. The organization gives priority to nonprofits that have community support and additional funding.
For Logue, embracing solar energy resonates with the tenets of the Episcopal Church.