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  Freewaters partners with

Press release:

Laguna Hills, CA (January 20, 2014) – Freewaters, makers of casual shoes and sandals, is well known as a company that views footwear as a tool for good. For the past three years, the company has developed a clean drinking water project in Kenya where to date they have completed fifteen wells for the rural community of 10,000 people in Tulwet.

Recently, the Freewaters team announced a new domestic project in conjunction with Therm-a-Rest™ and Cascade Designs® that will provide hands-on, real-world lessons on water science and purification for high school students in Ventura County, California. The program is set to launch in Spring of 2014.

Sales of Freewaters sandal and shoe styles featuring Therm-a-Rest™ footbeds are helping to fund this pilot educational project. Volunteers will visit classrooms and teach kids how to use the Cascade Designs SE200 Smart Electrochlorinator water purifier for emergencies and disaster relief, providing practical lessons on water purification and health as part of a broader science and engineering curriculum.

“Freewaters is founded on the passionate belief that all people deserve access to fresh, clean water and we are vigilant in nurturing this cause,” said Freewaters Co-founder Eli Marmar. “We understand the importance of education in achieving this goal, which is why we’re incredibly excited to be a part of the pilot program with Cascade Designs—educating youth who will be the next generation of activists, scientists and global citizens.”

The program has high hopes of success. Ultimately, the curriculum will integrate with the Department of Homeland Security, Cascade Designs® Cooperative Research and Development Agreement, the Naval Base Ventura County,  Oxnard Union High School District and California State University of Channel Islands—all organizations that are a leaders in education and water treatment and disaster preparedness solutions.  With the success of this pilot, the program has the potential to be replicated in many school districts around the country.

“We are excited to be a part of this creative partnership with Freewaters,” said Doug Jacot, Vice President of Therm-a-Rest. “It is an honor to collaborate on a program for high school students that brings practical science and business into the classroom, connecting students to careers in their communities. Ventura County educators are proving to be trailblazers in bringing STEM education to a higher level.”

To learn more about Freewaters Footwear’s commitment to clean water initiatives, visit Freewaters.com.

About Freewaters

Freewaters makes innovative and easy-going footwear that transport you into vacation mode the minute you slip them on.  Each pair helps support clean drinking water projects and comes with a stress-free limited lifetime warranty.  Freewaters products and ethos are dedicated to those that seek the freedom of the open road, act as global citizens and dare to chart their own path in life.  Visit www.freewaters.com to view our complete product line.

About Therm-a-Rest®

Seattle-based Therm-a-Rest has been the market leader in premium outdoor comfort since its invention of the world’s first self-inflating mattress in 1972. A commitment to providing inventive, long-lasting and reliable products has driven the expansion of the line into closed-cell foam mattresses, air mattresses, sleeping bags, blankets, and seating solutions that reinvent the way people sleep outside. All Therm-a-Rest mattresses are made in the Seattle, U.S.A. and Cork, Ireland manufacturing facilities. For more information, visit www.thermarest.com.

About Cascade Designs®

For forty years, Seattle-based Cascade Designs, Inc. has led the outdoor industry in designing innovative, useful and long-lasting equipment, manufacturing the majority of products in their Seattle, U.S.A. and Cork, Ireland facilities. For more information on Cascade Designs or links to its premium brands: Therm-a-Rest®, MSR®, Platypus®, SealLine®, E-Case®, Hummingbird™, PackTowl® and Tracks®, please visit www.cascadedesigns.com.