Bennett Elementary students hit the pavement on Friday, September 18, for the school’s 26th annual Walkathon. The walkathon raised roughly $36,000 for resources for school programs not funded by the Bellevue School District.

Such programs include field trips, Science Week, Art Night and will help cover the cost of a full-time certificated teacher’s aide for the upcoming school year.

Bellevue Mayor Grant Degginger and his wife Kathy, stopped by the Walkathon on Friday to cheer on the walkers and show their support for Bellevue schools.

“Our walkathon was a blast,” described Bennett Elementary PTSA Member Kristin Nash. “The energy level was high and the weather was so beautiful, we had to break out the sprinkler just to keep the kids cool.”

This year’s Walkathon theme was “Go Green, Saving the World one Step at a Time.” Bennett Elementary is one of more than 300 area schools who are going green year round, by participating as a “Level One” school in the King County Green Schools Program. The Green Schools Program promotes improved conservation practices and is part of the King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks, Solid Waste Division, Recycling and Environmental Services Section. Funding for the program comes from the Solid Waste Division.