Jerry W. Lawson is the National Manager for U.S. EPA’s ENERGY STAR congregations program. He previously served as Executive Director for Conservation, Customer Service, Rates and Forecasting at the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA), a central Texas regional utility. Prior to LCRA, Lawson headed energy and water management for the City of Austin, Texas as Director for Resource Management. A native Arkansan, Lawson also served as Deputy Director for Conservation and Renewable Resources at the Arkansas state energy department.
America’s diverse faith traditions and their teachings are expressed through both soaring and humble architecture, in prayer and liturgy, in song and art, through financial support, and through gifts of time and talent. Given the fundamental role of the physical facility in the life of the congregation, it follows that facility management tasks subsequent to design and construction—which may seem mundane and repetitious—are integral to the success of the church mission.