Dear Source:
The STX Big Island Adventure Camp @ AZ Academy would like [to] send out a special thank you to Seven Seas Water & Schuster Water Company!
Summer is a time for children to run, play, swim, laugh, and enjoy their care free youthfulness! This summer our territory has been under drought-like conditions and water has become a precious commodity to AZ Academy and the STX Big Island Adventure Camp @ AZ. Our summer camp features 2 swimming pools for children to splash and play in all summer long and a 50’ water slide used sparingly, which are the quintessential hallmarks of a summer camp experience.
The price of water and an island-wide tightened economy almost threatened AZ Academy’s ability to provide this to its campers. That is, until the generosity of Seven Seas Water reminded the school of the important role it plays for our youth both during the year and in the summer. Emptied for repairs in the spring, Cruzana Manor’s pool needed to be filled for summer camp. We needed 30,000 gallons of WAPA water to do it! Plus, a smaller pool for the 3-5 year olds needed to be filled. Camp Director Julie Landreneau said, “we knew this was going cost more than what we had budgeted for water for the entire summer, so I reached out to the community for support.”
And her call was answered by two businesses that have partnered with AZ Academy on several occasions – Seven Seas Water donated the water and Schuster’s Water Service hauled it! “It was incredible to see that there is still a lot of heart in our community for our youth,” Landreneau reflected. But as summer continued on with little to no rain to fill its cistern, the STX Big Island Adventure Camp @ AZ Academy found itself again in a water crisis. Turning again to Seven Seas for help, several thousand gallons of water will be donated this week to fill the cistern up!
We wanted to write this editorial because we think it’s important that the community experiences the hope we feel every day. We know that there are many challenges we face in the territory, yet there are incredible people and businesses that are ready and willing to be a part of the solutions. Working with children is always rewarding, but being supported by your community feels great as well!
A sincere thank you to Seven Seas Water & Schuster’s Water Company & their staff members for stepping up to again serve our community which allowed us to better serve our campers. Sincerely,
Julie Landreneau
Camp Director
STX Big Island Adventure Camp @ AZ Academy
Paula M. Heller
Executive Director
AZ Academy