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ORMOND BEACH OBSERVER
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OrmondBeachObserver.com
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2015
BIZ BUZZ
Keri Bedard, marketing specialist, listens to President and CEO Bill Gallagher explain the company’s origins. Brian McMillan
Solar-Fit: four decades of rays A lot has changed in the solar power industry in 40 years, and Bill Gallagher has seen it all.
When Bill Gallagher first started in the solar power business, there weren’t many manufacturers, so they made their own panels. “Not knowing any better, we thought that was a good idea,” he said, reminiscing about the materials: wooden boxes, copper plates and black paint. Forty years later, Gallagher is in a suit and tie in his storefront in Holly Hill, president and CEO of Solar-Fit, a company that has 6,000 customers in Palm Coast alone. Now, the company installs solar panels in homes and businesses, helping people save substantial money on their power bills. For example, Home Care Pharmacy, in Palm Coast, brought their power bill down from almost $500 to about $8 per month. The cost of the solar installation was financed and paid for through the savings over the course of about three years. FROM STUDENT TO PARTNER
After growing up in the Adirondacks and seeing how pollution
impacted the environment — acid rain defoliated the trees, and trout died in the rivers — Gallagher got interested in renewable energy. “To me, it wasn’t so much about climate change,” he said, “it was about the pollution.” Solar power was part of the solution, he decided. After moving to Florida in 1970 to attend Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Gallagher began working in the solar industry. But he always stayed closed to ERAU. He speaks to engineering classes and encourages young entrepreneurs there. In 2012, a new partnership helped SolarFit benefit a whole community in Haiti. The project used solar energy to supply power to schools and also to wells and pumps to provide clean water to communities that were ravaged by an earthquake in Haiti. Gallagher said ERAU made the project happen, but his own involvement and donations of supplies led Solar-Fit being selected as one of two winners at the 2015 Brian D. Robertson Solar Schools Memorial Fund Awards, which were given at the Top Solar
Solar-Fit employs 25 people, including these standouts: n Kim Brooks, business manager n Gloria Edison, sales manager n Scott Snyder, operations manager n Chany Oeung, office manager n Jeff Brooks, service manager
Contractors Gala on Sept. 14, in Anaheim, California. Gallagher said Dr. Marc Compere, from Embry-Riddle, was instrumental in making the project happen. “He takes the students over there and helps them,” Gallagher said. “This is all gratis, free stuff. They’ve been going for three years.” Also last month, Solar-Fit was recognized by Solar Power World for the third-consecutive year as one of the premier solar contractors in America. Visit solar-fit.com or call 4412299. Email Brian McMillan at editor@ormondbeachobserver.com.
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Barr & Associates Physical Therapy, 1425 Hand Ave., Suite H, has announced that Dr. Stacy McDaniel has been added to the staff as an associate. A graduate of the University of St. Augustine and the University of Florida, McDaniel has a doctorate in physical therapy and a master’s degree in occupational therapy.
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Alfie’s Restaurant in Ormond-bythe-Sea celebrated its 29-year anniversary on Sept. 24. Betty and Bud Evans opened the original Alfie’s Restaurant in Jamestown, New York, in 1969 and moved to their current location at 1666 Oceanshore Blvd. in 1986. Today, Betty and Bud’s son, Greg Evans, and his wife, Dina, own and operate the restaurant. The restaurant is involved with Breast Cancer Awareness, the American Heart Association, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Ormond-by-the-Sea Lions Club, the local AARP chapter and several other local fundraisers. The restaurant is open 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week. Call 441-7024, visit alfiesrestaurant. com/index.html or find them on Facebook.
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Greg and Dina Evans operate Alfie’s Restaurant in Ormond-by-the-Sea.
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www.ToscanaPalmCoast.com 45 New Water Oak Drive - Off Old Kings Road, 2 Miles North of Hwy 100
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BRIAN MCMILLAN
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