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Customs House Museum becomes Clarksville-Montgomery County Green Certified

Clarksville-Montgomery County Green Certification ProgramMontgomery County, TN – The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center is the first organization of 2017 to celebrate their Clarksville-Montgomery County Green Certification.

Montgomery County Mayor Jim Durrett, City of Clarksville Mayor Kim McMillan, Chamber of Commerce Director Melinda Shepard, several CMC Green Certification Steering Committee Members and several Museum Board Members attended their green ribbon cutting.

(L to R) Melinda Shepard, Randy Spurgeon (Customs House Staff): Sollie Fott (Customs House Board of Trustees); Terri Jordan (Customs House Staff); Colin McAlexander (Customs House Staff); JD Richardson; Mayor Durrett, Kali Mason (Customs House Staff); Mayor McMillan, Jim Zimmer; Eleanor Williams (Customs House Board of Trustees); William Wyatt (Customs House Chair, Board of Trustees); Tim Swaw (CMCGCP Steering Committee) and Daryl Pater (CMCGCP Steering Committee).
(L to R) Melinda Shepard, Randy Spurgeon (Customs House Staff): Sollie Fott (Customs House Board of Trustees); Terri Jordan (Customs House Staff); Colin McAlexander (Customs House Staff); JD Richardson; Mayor Durrett, Kali Mason (Customs House Staff); Mayor McMillan, Jim Zimmer; Eleanor Williams (Customs House Board of Trustees); William Wyatt (Customs House Chair, Board of Trustees); Tim Swaw (CMCGCP Steering Committee) and Daryl Pater (CMCGCP Steering Committee).

JD Richardson, facilities manager of the Customs House, led the certification effort with full support from the museum’s Executive Director Jim Zimmer. Mayor McMillan asked for an example of some of the changes they made and whether staff who worked at the Customs House were practicing some of the same initiatives in their homes.

“We are recycling much more than what we did in the past, converted quite a bit of our lighting to LED and are continuing that effort, we’ve had energy evaluations performed by CDE and HNA to better control and use energy. Some of their suggestions have been implemented and we will continue make changes as we can. We’ve been turning things off, reusing paper and cardboard that is not recycled, and adjusting our thermostats and shut things down that are not used.” JD responded.

Several of the employees also agreed that they were doing some of the same things in their homes.

“Since your funding comes from the City budget we especially appreciate your good stewardship with resources. We have to spread the message out to the community so that others understand. It’s not just about the green businesses it’s about getting the word out to make a greater difference,” said McMillan.

“One of the biggest advantages of this program is about the attitude adjustment: thinking about these things and realizing that I can make a difference. Whether it’s at an institutional level or at a personal level, it’s the change of attitude that makes a difference. I know part of what Bi-County and the local school system does is teach kids what they can do to conserve resources. Kids are like watchdogs with these things because they have been taught and they will let you know what you should do. The more people that get involved the more accepted it becomes.”

Mayor Durrett added, “Thank you Jim, the board and the staff for participating in this program. In your daily lives here at the museum you do a lot of work to preserve the history of Clarksville and Montgomery County. You display it well and I think you are doing the same for our environment. Obviously you are in a preservation mode for our environment and you are displaying that by what you are doing here. People will see that when they come to the museum and we appreciate it.”

The Customs House Museum & Cultural Center is Tennessee’s second largest general interest museum with over 35,000 square feet of exhibit space. Customs House is open every day but Monday and has something memorable for visitors of all ages.  Visit www.customshousemuseum.org or call 931.648.5780 for more information.

If your business has an interest in learning more about the Clarksville-Montgomery County Green Certification Program email Michelle Newell at manewell@mcgtn.net or call 931.245.1867.

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