Mr. Sun Solar Party Celebrates 30+ Years of Success and Our 10kW Solar System

On August 23rd Mr. Sun Solar celebrated 30+ years of success and the addition to our solar system with a big party attended by over 100 customers, family and friends, and dignitaries in the solar community.

“It took a village to make this party so special,” said John Patterson, President of Mr. Sun Solar, Inc. “Every employee at Mr. Sun worked long hours to make our shop and showroom beautiful. On top of that, our talented employees and their families helped with the food and provided all of the entertainment.”

The theme of the party was, “Just Look at What the Sun Can Do!” Brett Stigile and Steve Sefchick cooked hot dogs on a solar cooker, John Patterson made his famous baked beans and chocolate chip cookies baked in another.

The electric flatbed truck was on display, powered completely by the sun. That's because Mr. Sun Solar gets 100% of its energy from solar power – the company’s additional 10kW brings the total system size to 16.7 kW – enough to power all the heat, air conditioning, computers, lights, and power tools in the office and warehouse, plus completely charge the electric truck.

Employees and their families provide the entertainment

Entertainment was non-stop during the 4+ hour party. Live music came from the LA band, Monte Mar, featuring Patterson's son, Jonathan, on vocals and lead guitar. The band is on a west coast tour, and Patterson planned the party to coincide with their performance in Portland. They are traveling with an opening band, The Grownup Noise, which also played.

Other entertainment included employee Josh Vandervort modeling gear from suppliers such as SolarWorld, Sunmodo, Platt Electric, NESL, Keller Supply, and others. Josh hammed it up as John Patterson announced the fashions and described how each supplier has helped make Mr. Sun one of the most trusted solar companies in the Northwest. Josh was a natural model, even when he "wore" a 4' x 6' SolarWorld PV module.

Steve Sefchick brought his DJ equipment to keep the party lively when the bands weren’t playing. He also gave a thrilling skateboard demonstration when he jumped off a 10 foot platform onto his skateboard. Although he knew his young knees could take the hard landing, many in the crowd winced when he came down. Steve's 11 year old son Elijah performed break dancing, impressing everyone with his limber moves.

Randy Batchelor demonstrated his skills with a lighted hula hoop. The flames came out of several points, and as he gyrated and swung the hoop around his waist, neck, and legs, it looked like the fire would ignite him any second, thrilling the crowd.

Laura Mattison, salesman Pete Edling's fiance, gave two exciting performances with silks draped from the 30 foot ceiling of Mr. Sun’s warehouse. Laura climbed the golden silk cloth and did amazing acrobatic feats near the ceiling, sometimes dropping several feet so swiftly the crowd gasped in unison and then squealed with delight.

Josh Vandehey's girlfriend, Sarah Feld, danced with flaming lamps on ropes, twirling them over her head and while on her knees. She also performed with a flaming hula hoop, amazing onlookers with her coordination and ability to keep the flames so close but escape from harm. Young and old were mesmerized by her skilled performance.

Employees' home-brewed beer and sunny lemon cake are party favorites

Pete Edling and Greg Kamps made delicious beer for the event that they served from taps cleverly engineered into a large 250 amp disconnect. Those who preferred wine were treated to John Patterson's famous Sangria.

Sherry Jennings made a stunning cake with Mr. Sun Solar’s logo on a sky blue background. Everyone agreed the cake was too beautiful to cut, but the hungry prevailed and Sherry served them tender slices of lemon cake with lemon filling.

The party could not have happened without the many days of planning and hard work from all employees, especially Kelli Wolford, Sherry Jennings, Brett Stigile, Steve Sefchick, and Suzanne Olsen, who helped plan, prepare food and move equipment to create open areas in the showroom and warehouse. Special thanks to Greg DuPre', Justin O'Dell, Stan Zamedyanskiy, Greg Kamps, Chris Hansen, Aaron Roney, and Erik Martin for their invaluable hard work and contributions toward making the party a huge success.

To see more photos, click here or go to Mr. Sun Solar's Facebook page.

Randy Batchelor twirls a flaming hoop.