HERSHEY, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Pennsylvania American Water today announced the winners of its 16th Annual “Protect Our Watersheds” Art Contest, with a sixth-grade student from Pittsburgh scoring top honors. The company received more than 800 entries from fourth-, fifth- and sixth-graders across the commonwealth. Pennsylvania American Water announced the contest winners as part of National Drinking Water Week, which runs May 6-12.
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Artwork earning top honors drawn by Benjamin Bischoff of the Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School.
Sixth grader Benjamin Bischoff of the Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts School earned the grand prize for his artwork with the message: “Protect Our Watersheds, Protect the Water We Share!” His 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.
"We are very impressed with the creativity shown in the children’s artwork and how well they expressed the importance of protecting our water resources," said Pennsylvania American Water President Jeffrey L. McIntyre. "With more than 800 entries this year, the contest has really grown in popularity as more students, teachers and parents are incorporating it into their environmental education.”
Bischoff’s artwork earned first prize among western Pennsylvania entries, followed by fourth grader Beatrix Rummel, a homeschool student from Indiana County, in second place. Fifth grader Cameron Dames of Joe Walker Elementary School in Washington County finished third.
In eastern Pennsylvania, the first place winner is sixth grader Amanda Zygmunt of Spring-Ford Intermediate School, Montgomery County. Second place goes to Yingqi Zeng from Abington Heights Middle School, Lackawanna County, and in third place is sixth grader Sarah Groff, also from Spring-Ford Intermediate School. 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 Bischoff as the grand prize winner.
Pennsylvania American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to approximately 2.4 million people. With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 6,900 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to an estimated 15 million people in 46 states and Ontario, Canada. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable water services to our customers to make sure we keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
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