The Water Education Foundation hosted an open house and reception on May 2 as part of the Big Day of Giving campaign.

The Foundation’s office was open for visitors between 3:30 and 6:30 p.m. to meet our team and learn more about what we do to educate and inspire understanding of the most precious natural resource in California and across the West — water!

Guests enjoyed free refreshments and appetizers while catching up on our tours, conferences, maps, water news and training programs for teachers and up-and-coming water professionals.

The open house was held in conjunction with Big Day of Giving, an initiative of the Sacramento Region Community Foundation to grow philanthropy. It is a 24-hour online giving challenge that brings together the region’s nonprofit community to help raise much-needed unrestricted funds and shine a spotlight on the work nonprofits do.

No donation was necessary to attend our open house, but guests were encourage to help us reach our $15,000 fundraising goal by making a tax-deductible donation here.

Here are just a few things your donations helped us accomplish in 2024:

• Planning for an all-new Klamath River Tour in 2025
• Brand new updates to our Layperson’s Guides – Water Recycling in 2024 and an updated California Water guide in both English and Spanish to be published in 2025 
• Expanded Project WET teacher training workshops throughout California
• Free public access to our Western Water news coverage
• Scholarships for our tours, events & workshops

What people say about the Foundation’s impact:

“The Water Education Foundation has significantly enhanced my personal and professional growth! The emphasis on collaboration, equitable communication and partnership within the Foundation’s programs has inspired me to continually look at the ‘bigger picture’ and evaluate how I can adopt an inclusive approach to problem-solving”
- Cheyanne Harris, Civil Engineer, Brown and Caldwell, Foundation Board Member, Water Leaders Class of 2019

“The Water Education Foundation helped ignite my passion for California water. Through attending events and participating in the Water Leaders class, I learned how valuable my experience in California agriculture can be in broader discussions about water.”
- Sara Reid, VP, Lead Relationship Manager – Western Region, CoBank, Foundation Board Member, Water Leaders Class of 2015