Top prizes awarded to students in ‘Protect Our Watersheds’ art contest
Pennsylvania American Water has announced the winners of its 17th Annual “Protect Our Watersheds” Art Contest, with a sixthgrade student from SpringFord Intermediate School scoring top honors.
The company received more than 350 entries from fourth-, fifth- and sixthgraders across the commonwealth.
Sixth-grader Lila Weingarten of Spring-Ford Intermediate School earned the grand prize for her artwork that reminds us “We Depend on our Watershed. We Need to Protect It!” Her artwork will be featured on “bloomer cards” and distributed across the state by Pennsylvania American Water. Bloomers are seed-filled cards that, when planted and tended, produce a variety of wildflowers.
“So many schools are incorporating environmental education into their curriculums,” said Pennsylvania American Water President Jeffrey McIntyre. “These students are future stewards of our natural resources, and this contest is a way for them to express their understanding of environmental protection.”
Weingarten’s artwork earned first prize among eastern Pennsylvania entries, followed by Ella Burke, a sixth-grade student from St. Clare/St. Paul’s School in Scranton in second place. Sixth grader Allison Lewis, also of Spring-Ford Intermediate School, finished third. The winning students will receive Barnes & Noble gift cards.
Pennsylvania American Water’s contest requires that the students accompany their artwork with a short description of how watershed protection affects them personally. After reviewing the entries, a panel of judges selected three top drawings from both eastern and western Pennsylvania before naming Weingarten as the grand prize winner.