Photo: KSL TV
SALT LAKE CITY— The Granite Education Foundation is putting out a call for donated water bottles.
Why? Schools across the state shut off their water fountains. The stereotypical shared watering hole in hallways is too dangerous to exist in the age of COVID-19.
But there’s an unexpected demand for reusable water bottles as a result, right alongside the need for masks and hand sanitizer.
The idea is kids will fill up their bottles at “filling stations” at the school, or simply from the classroom tap. But a student action organization along the Wasatch Front says it’s not so simple for every student.
“In Granite School District, because of the poverty issues that we face, there are a lot of kids that can’t afford a water bottle,” says Brent Severe, the CEO of the Granite Education Foundation. “About 65% of our students [live] at or below the poverty [line.]” The Foundation has started a donation drive to get the students water bottles.
He says in Granite District and other districts like it, the need is great, and immediate. “As of today [Tuesday afternoon] we’ve gotten 10,000 requests [for bottles.] We need to find 10,000… at least.”
Severe says donations can be made online at www.granitekids.org, or you can call them at 385-646-KIDS [5437.] Businesses can help too. The Granite Education Foundation will also take unused water bottles made for conventions or big meetings that never happened.