The hot and humid days of August spell dehydration for many vulnerable populations in Tempe and West Chandler. For the second year in a row, Mary Contreras State Farm Agency helped to alleviate the thirst.
Contreras worked alongside Adrienne Bryant of Bryant Commercial Real Estate last year in a similar effort through Valley of the Sun United Way in collaboration with Women United.
In 2020, Contreras leveraged a $500 grant offered by State Farm to launch the initial Maricopa County Bottled Water Drive. Within two weeks, the combined efforts of the two business owners amassed 51,000 bottles of water for area nonprofit organizations.
This year, the two women set their sights a little higher and hoped to collect a whopping 200,000 bottles.
“Join us during this difficult heat of August, and make the difference with life giving water,” Contreras urged the public in a Facebook post. “We are asking for donations of flats of water at our agency office, 2145 E. Warner Road, Suite 101, Tempe.”
Contreras and Bryant are already halfway to their goal with more than 110,000 bottles of water delivered to the Salvation Army for distribution. The drive runs through Aug. 31.
In addition to donating cases of water, financial donations can also be made to enable the purchase bottled water for the drive. A $5 donation will provide 40 bottles of water; $25 provides 200 bottles; $100 provides 800 bottles; and $200 provides 1,920.
By Aug. 25, more than 380,000 bottles of water had been donated to the Valley of the Sun United Way, according to Kelli Fawcett, director of donor relations for the organization.
Information: kfawcett@vsuw.org
