To the Editor:
This is a letter concerning the proposal to build a 600-acre solar facility right next to Terra Ceia Christian School. Terra Ceia is the heart of Beaufort County’s great agricultural farm district. Terra Ceia means “Heavenly Land” and it is some of the best land in Beaufort County producing yields of corn — 150-200 or more bushels per acre plus high yields of soybeans, wheat, and cotton. My Dad and Mother and 10 children left the Netherlands and moved to Canada in 1938 just before World War II broke out. Dad had always wanted to move to America, and in 1943 he was able to do so. Dad and Mom and eight of us children moved to Terra Ceia; the two older children stayed in Canada and moved later.

One of the reasons Dad moved to Terra Ceia was because of Terra Ceia Christian School. Dad and Mom strongly believed in their parental duty as proclaimed in God’s Word: Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” This verse was also chosen as a motto for our school. They believed this promise of God, and so did my wife and I for our 10 children, who all went to Terra Ceia Christian School. God has blessed us for it. Terra Ceia Christian School was part of that blessing. I can remember those years I walked to school, I could see the farmers working. Planting, cultivating and harvesting their crops, it inspired me to become a farmer and some of my children and grandchildren to seek an occupation in the farm agricultural industry.

Now, what inspiration will the school children get by looking at acres and acres of solar panels for years to come? This solar facility is not only an eyesore, but it is no asset to the community. We don’t need it. It is a money-losing operation at the taxpayers’ expense. To cover this land with solar panels seems sacrilege. If it wasn’t for the subsidy, you would not see one solar facility. Who is going to clean up this mess after 25 years? And who is paying for that? I would like to know where the money trail goes, who is benefitting from this solar operation? Why are some leases paid more than others? What is all the hurry in getting this done without disclosing all the facts to the public? I love America, but I think it is time for some common sense. God said in Genesis 8:22, “While the earth remaineth, seed time and harvest, and cold and heat and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease.” All things are in His hands, I pray that wisdom may prevail. To God be the Glory.
Sincerely,
William Van Staalduinen

Terra Ceia