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municipalauthorities.org | 29 Another teacher praised, “The hands- on experience for the kids.” Another commented “I love seeing students highly engaged in learning.” Several of the professionals who served as volunteers also shared their thoughts. One noted “Besides the kids benefitting from all of the knowledge thrown at them, the comradery of all the volunteers getting together (was fantastic.)” Another volunteer made this observation... “The long-term cooperative effort of so many water systems for an educational outreach is outstanding.” A special acknowledgement should be given to the Delaware River Basin Commission. Their volunteers said they that have been to every single HydroMania event since it was started! LVWS mascot “Dewey” was a huge hit with the students, who lined up to get high-fives and pictures from the blue dew drop! During the course of the day, LVWS donated a $1,000 scholarship to LCTI to be given to their students. In addition, LVWS will provide four other $1,000 scholarships to local high school and college students this year. HydroMania (as well as the scholarships) is funded through a LVWS golf outing fundraiser, as well as through generous donations from Blue Triton, Jacobs, Core & Main, Hazen and Sawyer, Ferguson and Gannett Fleming. LVWS and HydroMania were also the recipients of an incredible $10,000 grant from Niagara Bottling. "HydroMania brings together an incredible group of local sponsors, exhibitors, and volunteers each year, all united by the goal of nurturing the next generation of water stewards,” HydroMania Event Coordinator Sue Sampson of the Lehigh County Authority noted. “The planning committee does a fantastic job of managing the many details involved in organizing an event of this size. This includes coordinating sponsorships, reaching out to schools, exhibitors, and volunteers, as well as handling event logistics and communications. It’s truly amazing to see everything come together on event day, and it is especially rewarding to witness the excitement in young children’s eyes as they learn and explore at HydroMania.” Participating teachers were asked to rate a series of questions on the event on a scale of 1 (needs work) to 5 (no changes needed). The results ranged from a low of 4.37 to a high of 4.92. LVWS sees that as a positive affirmation that HydroMania is a very positive event, while acknowledging that there is still some room for improvement (specifically dealing with the logistics of loading/unloading school buses in a very small area.) Schools that participated in the morning session were: Fogelsville Elementary (Parkland School District), Union Terrace Elementary (Allentown School District), Sheckler Elementary (Catasauqua School District), Jefferson Elementary (East Penn School District), and Moravian Academy (private.) Afternoon school participants included: Alburtis Elementary and Seven Generations Charter School (East Penn School District), Zephyr Elementary (Whitehall-Coplay School District), and Lehigh Christian Academy (private.) LVWS is a regional, non-profit, 501(c)3 organization made up of volunteers from 17 public water utilities and associate member companies that support the water sector. Members share their resources and expertise to accomplish their shared mission of increasing public awareness of the important water issues we face in the Lehigh Valley. LVWS member utilities include: Borough of Alburtis, Borough of Macungie, Borough of Catasauqua, Borough of Emmaus, Borough of Slatington, City of Bethlehem, Easton Suburban Water, Hellertown Borough Authority, Lehigh County Authority, Lower Saucon Authority, Northampton Borough Municipal Authority, Portland Borough Authority, Salisbury Township, South Whitehall Township, Upper Saucon Township, Walnutport Borough Authority, and Whitehall Township Authority. S Improving Neighborhoods, Infrastructure & Environments One Project at a Time. TANDMASSOCIATES.COM Visit our booth at the 83rd Annual Conference & Trade Show PHILADELPHIA | BETHLEHEM | KING OF PRUSSIA