Fountain Green Elementary Wins First Place In BGE Contest

BEL AIR, MD – Fountain Green Elementary School won the annual safety-themed contest sponsored by Baltimore Gas and Electric, the utility company announced this week. For its illustration promoting natural gas safety, Fountain Green won $10,000.

“We are so excited about this award!” Fountain Green Elementary School Principal Alison Donnelly said in a statement.

There were 40 submissions around the region, which a panel of judges evaluated. Almost 25,000 online votes helped determine the winner, according to BGE.

Fountain Green Elementary School plans to use the $10,000 prize toward purchasing laptops.

"To be the first Harford County school to earn the top prize in this contest is truly an accomplishment, and I could not be prouder," Donnelly said.

In the contest, students were asked to illustrate a safety message around "Captain Mercaptan" and his sidekick Piper. The fictional character was inspired by mercaptan, an additive to natural gas that BGE and other utility companies use to make gas easier to detect.

Here is the entry submitted by Fountain Green Elementary School:

"We always talk about educating the whole child, and this goes to show that the daily lessons in all subject areas, including fine arts, are important and applicable," Donnelly said.

BGE will feature Fountain Green Elementary School students' creation in a comic strip this spring.

These schools were the winners of the contest, according to BGE:

• $10,000 Captain’s Choice Award and BGE Hero Award, Fountain Green Elementary School, Bel Air
• $5,000 BGE Hero Award, Perry Hall Christian School, Perry Hall
• $5,000 BGE Hero Award, St. Stephen School, Kingsville
• $5,000 BGE Hero Award, North Bend Elementary School, Jarrettsville
• $5,000 BGE Hero Award, Immaculate Conception School, Towson
• $5,000 BGE Hero Award, St. Joseph School, Fullerton

The contest is designed to help educate children and communities about natural gas safety.

“BGE’s natural gas safety contest taps into children’s creativity to help them remember important gas safety messages that will benefit their schools, families and communities," Christopher Burton, vice president of Gas Distribution for BGE, said in a statement. "Educating our customers, especially children, on how to remain safe around natural gas is a priority for BGE."

BGE offered these tips for staying safe around natural gas:

• Smell: A rotten egg smell comes from the additive mercaptan, which BGE puts in natural gas.
• Listen: Escaping gas makes a hissing sound.
• Look: Dirt in the air, dead plants, water bubbling and being blown into the air and fire coming from the ground are signs of natural gas leaking.
• Leave immediately if you detect natural gas. Don't turn anything, including cell phones, on; do not use matches; and do not try to find the source. Call BGE at 1-800-685-0123 and wait in a safe place outside.

Photos courtesy of BGE.