Educators have long prescribed that an imagination is critical to a child’s development. From the looks of the drawings submitted by more than 250 local students for the Henry County Water Authority’s (HCWA) annual Art Contest, these young artists have vivid imaginations on how to creatively express illustrations of the value of water.

The HCWA has announced the winners of its Imagine A Day Without Water Art Contest. Local students enrolled in K-12 Henry County Public Schools, Private Schools, or Home Schools, were invited to submit an 11×17 drawing that illustrates the importance of water conservation and/or what life would be like without clean, safe drinking water.

The age group category winners of this year’s HCWA Art Contest all received a $100 gift card, as did a teacher selected via a special drawing among those whose students participated in the contest. (The People’s Choice Award winner received a $50 gift card.) This year’s winners of the HCWA Imagine A Day Without Water Art Contest included:

•Allie Kate Williams, a 2nd grade student of Julie Toms at New Hope Elementary School, in the K-2nd grade age group.
•Reise Hebert, a 5th grade student of Katie Ireland at East Lake Elementary School, in the 3rd-5th grade age group.
•Tori Jackson, a 6th grade student of Cindy Carmack at the Impact Academy, in the 6th-8th grade age group.
•Syniah Charles, a 10th grade student of Melissa Woods at the Impact Academy, in the 9th-12th grade age group.
•Maci Bartley, a 5th grade student of Katie Ireland at East Lake Elementary School, as the “People’s Choice Award” winner.
•Angie Sorby, a teacher at Locust Grove Elementary School, as the winner of special drawing for teachers.
“This event invites students to use their artistic skill to show appreciation for their environment, while also getting them to think about the importance of water from a visual perspective, and I like that combination!” says Lindsey Sanders, HCWA Environmental Compliance Coordinator, who organized this year’s Imagine A Day Without Water Art Contest. “Hopefully, their artwork will encourage others to do the same.”

The Art Contest winners provided insights on what they were thinking as they were drawing illustrations to Imagine A Day Without Water.

“Since the body is 60 percent water, I drew something that reflected that,” says Reise Hebert, winner of the 3rd-5th grade age group. “So, I filled the bottom of my drawing with what has to have water and the top with what doesn’t need water.”

Fellow classmate Maci Bartley, winner of the “People’s Choice Award,” had a similar idea to draw “something bright and something dark” to reflect life with and without water. Reise and Maci get plenty of practice drawing as participants in the East Lake Elementary Art Club, under the direction of their art teacher, Katie Ireland.

Tori Jackson, the 6th-8th grade winner, wanted to participate in the Art Contest because she loves drawing and does so every day. She was not expecting to win but was pleasantly surprised to receive a first-place gift card and certificate from the HCWA.

“I started by practicing on a smaller piece of paper, before drawing what I submitted for the contest,” says Jackson. “Half of my drawing depicts life with water, such as the fun you can have at the beach, while the other half depicts life without water.”

Syniah Charles, winner of the 9th-12th grade division of the Art Contest, titled her drawing: “Save the Water.” She personified water in the form of a woman who was slowly losing water while on earth, noting that “when she runs out of water, it’s all gone.”

Imagine A Day Without Water – recognized this year on Thursday, Oct. 21, 2021 – is a national day of recognition within the water industry designed to raise awareness of the value of water, the essential and invaluable nature of public drinking water, as well as the importance of investments in water systems and utility infrastructure.

Imagine A Day Without Water is a key event of the national Value of Water Campaign sponsored by the U.S. Water Alliance, which consists of industry members such as the American Water Works Association (AWWA) and the Water Environment Federation (WEF), as well as utilities such as the HCWA, elected officials, policy makers, contractors, civil engineers, schools, and others. An estimated 1,100 organizations across the country participated in the Imagine A Day Without Water event in various ways this year.

This was the third annual Imagine A Day Without Water Art Contest hosted by the HCWA, with a record turnout of participants this year. A photo gallery of the event is available on the Authority’s website at www.hcwa.com.