Cancer diagnosis leads one woman to solar co-op and competitive boating

This is a profile piece rather than news about energy programs or rebates, so there's nothing here that directly affects a homeowner's own upgrade plans. It's a personal story about Rachel Levey, who works at PV Squared, a worker-owned solar installation cooperative in Massachusetts.

Levey took the job at PV Squared in 2017 while undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer, after deciding she wanted work that felt meaningful rather than "extractive and wasteful." She now serves as the cooperative's sales and service specialist, helping customers with system troubleshooting and explaining incentives and equipment, while also sitting on the board and building in-house software for the company.

Outside of work, Levey found dragon boat racing, a sport that has become popular among breast cancer survivors because the paddling motion helps with recovery. She coaches a team on the Connecticut River and competed for the U.S. national team at the World Dragon Boat Racing Championships in Germany, where her team won silver and bronze medals. She is training for next year's championship in Hong Kong.

The story doesn't cover any rebate programs, incentives, or technical details relevant to home solar or energy upgrades. It's a human-interest feature about one installer's personal journey into the solar industry.