Born and raised in South Stockton, when Christian R. decided to raise his own family in the same place, he started to face a common question from those around him – "Why don't you move out of here?"
Despite South Stockton's reputation as a city with a lack of opportunities for upward mobility, Christian has always wanted to stay rooted in the community that raised him. By choosing to remain, he aims to “break the cycle” of leaving Stockton, a rising trend with young people in the area.
Christian has lived on the same block in Stockton for nearly 25 years. He grew up in a house just three doors down and across from where he now lives. Christian's connection to his current home is particularly special; he purchased it directly from a treasured neighbor. This purchase was a promise that was kept for many years – one year when Christian was growing up, his elderly neighbor fell and seriously injured herself. Christian was the one who heard her and jumped over her fence to help. Sensing his kindred spirit, she promised to sell her house to him when he was all grown up in gratitude. After he married his wife, Christian rented her home for a year until he was financially ready to buy it. To his surprise, his neighbor presented him with a check for all the rent he had paid that year, putting it all toward his down payment! This profoundly deep connection to his home and community inspired Christian to invest seriously in property improvements, including solar, which ultimately led him to GRID Alternatives North Valley (GRID).
A couple of years ago, Christian learned about GRID through a pamphlet he received in the mail. He applied for GRID’s Energy for All program, which provides solar at no cost for homeowners with limited or fixed incomes, but found that his family didn’t qualify at that time due to their household income. Coincidentally, when the idea of getting solar for his home resurfaced earlier this year, he received another postcard from GRID. This time, his family had now grown to include his daughter and son, and he had experience with the application and knew how quick and easy the process was. To Christian’s delight, his household size and income qualified them. Christian and his family finally got a rooftop solar system installed in early October 2024, after a smooth process facilitated by GRID's outreach staff, who helped guide him through the paperwork and answered all of his questions.
Christian hopes the savings from his new solar system will help his family manage the rising cost of living, contribute to his children's education funds, and build their family’s emergency savings. They will be receiving a battery system with their solar, which will provide extra resilience in case of power outages.
Inspired by his positive experience receiving a no-cost solar + battery storage system with GRID, Christian has been proactive in sharing GRID’s program and his journey to solar with his community. Predatory for-profit solar companies have created a culture of distrust in many communities, including South Stockton, and Christian wants others to know that GRID Alternatives is an established and credible nonprofit organization and that they should also take advantage of the same program.
For more information about GRID’s Energy for All program, visit https://www.gridsolar.org/nv or call 866-921-4696.
Christian’s solar installation received partial funding from the California Strategic Growth Council’s Transformative Climate Communities Program, which is administered in partnership with the California Department of Conservation and funds community-led development and infrastructure projects that achieve major environmental, health, and economic benefits in California's most disadvantaged communities. For more information, visit https://sgc.ca.gov/grant-programs/tcc/.