Greene County Elementary School recently received a grant to improve drinking water usage.

Nurse Mary Pedersen says she received a $500 grant from Delta Dental’s “Rethink Your Drink” campaign. The grant funds were used to install an automatic water bottle filling station and water fountain. All elementary students and staff received free water bottles and toothbrushes as well.

As part of the grant, Pedersen says they’ve also developed several presentations for students to get knowledge and education about drinking more water. The first program is Dr. Keith Van Beek of Jefferson Family Dentistry, who will talk about dental health on February 12th. On February 19th there will be a demonstration of hidden sugars in different drinks. The final program will be on February 26th, covering two-minutes brushing times and a review of major concepts.

The Delta Dental of Iowa Foundation awarded 54 Iowa schools water bottle filling stations for $230,000 with support from the Iowa Department of Public Health Bureau of Nutrition and Health Promotion, Iowa Public Health Association, Iowa Department of Education and Balfrey & Johnston, Incorporated.