By SDCN Editor
San Diego, CA–More than 500 reusable water bottles are now in the hands of Foster Elementary School students, part of the latest donation of reusable water bottles by the Rob Machado Foundation to San Diego Unified District schools.
Made possible through the Rob Machado Foundation, 10,000 reusable bottles have been distributed to students at 20 schools to encourage them to drink more water and cut plastic pollution from local landfills, waterways, and the ocean.
One of the world’s most recognizable surfers, Machado is an environmentalist who started the foundation in 2004 to support environmental programs for youth.
“We are now at 30,000 water bottles donated to San Diego Unified schools since our partnership began in 2022,” said Rob Machado, Founder of the Rob Machado Foundation. “We want to raise enough money to donate water bottles to each student at all San Diego Unified schools.”
At Foster Elementary, the water bottles were handed out Friday, May 3, during two school events – the school’s “Roll Ride and Walk Day” and a “Bike Rodeo” hosted by the San Diego County Bike Coalition.
As part of the “Roll Ride and Walk Day,” students were encouraged to ride their bikes or walk to school to promote active commuting and build community and school spirit. In the afternoon, students learned bike safety tips from the San Diego County Bike Coalition at the bike rodeo.
“We want Foster students to see the benefits of riding a bike, safely,” Principal Leah Lessels said. “We also want them to stay hydrated, so these water bottles are a great way to encourage them to drink more water.”
Foster Elementary represents the school district’s six-year-long initiative to provide clean drinking water to all students.
Supported by the facilities bond program, San Diego Unified set a public health goal of water with lead content below one part per billion (ppb) and an action level of 5 ppb – three times the federal standard – through filtered systems.
“This event at Foster Elementary brings together several threads that are near and dear to me, said Board of Education Vice President Cody Petterson. “Clean water, staying active, and protecting the environment all go hand in hand, and it’s beautiful to see all the community partners coming together to uplift our students around these initiatives. ”
While all San Diego Unified schools have received temporary filtered water bottle fillers to ensure access to clean, filtered water for all, construction continues on the installation of additional permanent filtered hydration stations and the removal of all unfiltered drinking water outlets districtwide. The district is prioritizing schools with the youngest students first.
Construction is complete at 117 schools, including all primary grade level schools serving the youngest students, and construction is actively ongoing at another 24 sites.
