On a Tuesday afternoon, Jaclyn Campson and Marissa Frank lay on Condron’s floor, craving excitement. Marissa suggested, “Let’s start a business.” With that idea came a sense of altruism, concern and an inkling to change. Months later, Potable was born.
Potable is a non-profit organization created by Jaclyn and Marissa, both University of Scranton juniors. Marissa is a Marketing major from Cranford, NJ. Jaclyn is an Occupational Therapy major from Massapequa, NY. Potable’s mission: to provide clean drinking water to schools in Africa.
Potable. This word means “safe to drink.” That is the ultimate goal for the non-profit: “Pure Possibilities” for those who cannot gain access to clean water. But clean water is not the only thing the girls want to provide. With clean water must come the knowledge of clean water.
“A lot of times, these kids don’t know what it means to have clean water. That is why we will give the kids an educational curriculum about the global water crisis, so they know the importance. Potable will teach them how to drink clean water, what a filter does and all the background they need so that they can understand this issue and go home to tell their parents just how important it is, too,” said Marissa.
To understand what Potable is, let’s first take a look into Marissa’s own life of service. In 2014, Marissa traveled to an orphanage in Ghana on the Ivory Coast, in January of 2016 she ventured to Zambia where she taught English to Kindergarten through 7th graders. She has updated curriculums in Zimbabwe and taught at three different schools.
Potable is a filtered water bottle with a sleek and simple design. In order to help Jaclyn and Marissa fulfill their goal, all you have to do is buy one.
And this is legit. First, 100 percent of profit goes to Potable’s partner school Nekacheya School Highlands outside Living Stone in Zambia. Potable will provide them with a water filtration system of around 100,000 liters. But this is only the beginning.
The girls have invested their own money and time into EVERYTHING and it was a lot more work than they expected. “We had to pick from literally 1,000 different designs of water bottles from a manufacturer. It took so long to do just that one simple thing, but it was so important to us. We wanted our brand to stand out,” said Jaclyn.
After investing all their money, they came up with a business plan, researched their target market, created their own logo and reached out to their partner school.
This week on September 7 and 12 you can buy a Potable water bottle for only $15 at their table sit on second floor DeNaples Center from 4:30 – 7:30 p.m. Soon you will also be able to order some online.
The girls strive to take Potable farther and further than the University of Scranton. One thing is for sure: the girls want to keep the Potable momentum going forever. They’re craving innovation.
Down the road, they plan a product expansion of perhaps fruit-infused bottles, children’s items and even apparel. They want to multiply Potable’s mission throughout Africa. Soon, they anticipate Potable tranforming into a nation-wide college phenomenon. Hopefully, they will see a rise in interest on college campuses so that they can create different college ambassador programs campus-wide.
Not only will this create an expansion for the charity, but it will also educate youth in America about this issue and about the good of service itself. With hard work and devotion, Potable will inspire a national movement.
The biggest step for Jaclyn and Marissa: to visit Africa and meet those whose lives Potable touches.
How does someone’s family and friends feel after hearing their daughter, sister, friend or roommate is starting a non-profit organization? “Supportive. Everyone is surprised it’s actually happening because we have been talking about it for ages and it’s been taking a lot of our time. The amount of support surprised me the most” explained Marissa.
“We’ve been getting so much support not only from family and friends but also from the University here too. The photo club here is going to take some photos for us around campus so we’re really excited about that, a friend from home designed our website, a business law professor here is going over the legal aspect with us. We really could not have completed anything without all your help. Thank you so much,” added Jaclyn. “We are working with the legal side of it to make 501 C3 organization, getting trade marked, etc..” said Marissa excitedly.
This is a challenge to you, University of Scranton students. Help make Potable the outlet for Pure Possiblities!
Please visit www.potableplanet.com for instructions and information. Give them a like on Facebook @Potable and a follow on Instagram @potableplanet.