THE SECOND ANNUAL
"SOLAR FAMILY REUNION"
....
PARTY with the Solar Pioneers
and the Solar Family
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Fri, Aug 30 to Mon, Sep 3, 2019
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Labor Day Weekend
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Paonia, CO at Solar Energy International HQ
EVERYONE is invited!
SCHEDULE
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Fri: Visiting Day @ SEI Lab Yard
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Sat: Party & Movie
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Sun: Tours & Hikes
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Mon: Service Project
REGISTRATION opens in March
Mark your calendars for the Second Annual Solar Family Reunion, the successor event to the popular Solar Pioneer Parties. The Second Annual Solar Family Reunion will take place in beautiful Paonia, CO, home of Solar Energy International.
Join solar pros and family members from around the country to learn, connect, and have fun in a relaxed atmosphere with that special solar family reunion feel. As an added bonus we will be showing "Solar Roots - the Pioneers of PV”, the documentary film that tells the TRUE story of the birth of the solar industry,
Registration, camping, tours, hikes, and other information will be announced in early March, so stay tuned for updates. We look forward to seeing you at the Second Annual Solar Family Reunion!
Contact us below for additional information
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Solar Pioneer Parties and Solar Family Reunions
In 2015, I organized an event to reunite my "solar family" in a gathering to celebrate the birth of the PV industry and pay tribute to the brilliant men and women that worked for decades to make renewable energy a reality. The first "Solar Pioneer Party" took place in October 2015 in Humboldt County and was a huge success. More than 150 people attended, including a who's who of the industry's founders, as well as many of the younger generations of PV professionals. These people all shared a deep respect for the contribution of the pioneers. Words alone cannot describe how magical an experience it was having all those incredible people in one place at the same time.
Never before had so many solar pioneers gathered together for a social event that had no commercial content. I felt that someone should document the stories of these amazing people, and I contacted several industry journalists. Unfortunately, I was unsuccessful in getting anyone interested in conducting interviews with these amazing industry pioneers. After several attempts and eventual failures, I started to question if their stories would be documented. Not willing to let this opportunity pass by, I convinced my friend and talented videographer/co-worker Jason Vetterli to film interviews with the attendees. Without realizing it, Jason and I were about to undertake a two year project to create the first ever documentary film about how the solar PV industry started.
This first Solar Pioneer Party in Humboldt was so popular, attendees demanded an encore. Working with Backwoods Solar, we organized a second "Solar Pioneer Party" the next year in Grass Valley, CA. Even more of the industry pioneers attended and we all viewed a 20 minute teaser clip of the documentary footage. Everyone loved it!
Our documentary production came to a conclusion in 2017 and in November 2017, we held the "Third and Final Solar Pioneer Party" where we debuted our documentary film "Solar Roots - The Pioneers of PV". It was a huge hit among the three hundred attendees, many who told me the movie was inspirational.
While the Third Solar Pioneer Party was indeed the final Solar Pioneer Party, we have decided to continue the effort to unite our solar family once a year in an event called The Solar Family Reunion. The Solar Family Reunion will bring together pioneers and solar industry professionals to honor the contributions of the pioneers of the PV industry and build and grow our solar family.
The First Annual Solar Family Reunion was held in Tucson, AZ in October 2018 and the Second Annual Solar Family Reunion will take place Aug 30 to Sep 3 2019 in beautiful Paonia, CO, home to Solar Energy International. We hope you will make the trip and experience the magic of the Solar Family Reunion.
Solar Pioneers Forever!