West Basin Announces "Water is Life" Contest Winners

On April 27 the West Basin Municipal Water District Board of Directors presented awards to 15 grand prize and honorable mention winners to local students for the annual "Water is Life" Student Art Contest.

More than 400 entries were received this year from public and private schools throughout West Basin's service area and winning artwork was chosen based on the creativity of students' portrayal of water conservation messages coupled with their artistic skills.

"The artwork and accompanying messages are really timely as we are experiencing our fourth consecutive year of drought and remain committed to educating our students and the community on the need to conserve water," said Gloria D. Gray, West Basin Board President. "We truly look forward to this event each year and are continuously amazed at the talented artwork we receive."

Part of West Basin's program to foster the awareness of water conservation, particularly during a time of severe drought, the Water is Life Student Art Contest encourages third through twelfth grade students to create a water conservation message and illustrate it with original, hand-drawn artwork. Three grand prize winners and 12 honorable mention awardees were awarded an iPad Air and recognized at the Water is Life awards ceremony on April 27, 2015 in Carson.

Grand prize winners from this year's Water is Life Art Contest include:

1. Elementary School Grand Prize Winner – Aaron Wakefield-Carl, Grade 5, Cornerstone at Pedregal Elementary School, Rancho Palos Verdes

2. Middle School Grand Prize Winner – Daniela Lopez, Grade 7, Fleming Middle School, Lomita

3. High School Grand Prize Winner – Gene Whang, Grade 10, Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, Rolling Hills Estates

The 12 honorable mention award winners were:

1. Sebastian Smith, Grade 4, Beulah Payne Elementary School, Inglewood

2. Orlando Lopez, Grade 5, Lomita Math/Science Magnet School, Lomita

3. Nayeli Soon, Grade 5, Richmond Street Elementary School, El Segundo

4. Jaqueline Ramirez, Grade 5, Gardena Elementary School, Gardena

5. Jamie Doo, Grade 8, Ridgecrest Intermediate School, Rancho Palos Verdes

6. Tania Avalos, Grade 7, La Tijera K-8 Charter School, Inglewood

7. Erin Marble, Grade 8, Culver City Middle School, Culver City

8. Amy Villarreal, Grade 8, Prarie Vista Middle School, Hawthorne

9. Yessenia Avalos, Grade 10, Inglewood High School, Inglewood

10. Eric Bai, Grade 11, West High School, Torrance

11. Chrizelle Soon, Grade 10, El Segundo High School, El Segundo

12. Joceline Lara, Grade 12, R.K. Lloyde High School, Lawndale

To further convey the importance of water conservation, winning artwork will be featured on West Basin promotional and informational materials, and on bookmarks distributed at local public libraries, while supplies last, just in time for May, which is "Save Our Water" month. Sponsorship for the 2015 art contest came from the Law Offices of Lemieux O'Neill, the Water Replenishment District of Southern California, and United Water.

For more information about the Water is Life Student Art Contest and to learn more about West Basin's education programs, please visit http://www.westbasin.org.