Pictured above: Ray Straub (left) and Linda Straub (fourth from left) stand with April Garcia and her two children in front of a new fountain at Delaware Primary School | Photo By: Ben Cleeton
For Linda and Ray Straub, the health and safety of children is personal. With two young grandchildren in elementary school, they can easily picture the laughter and energy of a busy day — and just as easily imagine how fragile that joy would be if the water those children drank wasn’t safe.
That concern became heightened when the couple read a newspaper article about the high rates of childhood lead poisoning in Syracuse. The piece described the long-term effects of lead exposure and the reality that, for many families, the danger exists in places children should feel safest.
“Learning about children in the city of Syracuse suffering from lead exposure — something completely outside of their control — made us think about our own family,” Linda said. “If our grandchildren have safe drinking water and safe homes, then we believe all children should.”
The Straubs reached out to us to explore where their support could make the greatest impact. Together, we identified a project that would protect children directly where they spend much of their day: at school.
The couple made a gift which was combined with support from our LeadSafeCNY Fund. The resulting funding enabled the replacement of drinking fountains in Syracuse City School District buildings with new refillable stations that filter out contaminants such as lead, PFAS and microplastics.
The new fountains are more than just a source of safe water — they’re a visible reminder to students, teachers and staff that their health matters. The refillable design encourages students to bring reusable bottles, helping them stay hydrated and instilling habits that support both personal health and environmental responsibility.
When the Straubs visited Delaware Primary School to see the new fountains, they met April Garcia, a Syracuse mother of four. Her eldest son, who lives with autism, developed lead poisoning from exposure in a former rental home on the Southside of Syracuse. Together, those diagnoses have deeply influenced much of her life’s work. Today she chairs the LeadSafeCNY Coalition Family Voices Advisory Council, serves on multiple advocacy boards and works as a family resource specialist, helping other parents navigate complex systems and access support.
In Syracuse, decades of aging infrastructure and disinvestment have left both homes and schools vulnerable to lead exposure. Families often face barriers to addressing these risks because remediation is costly, enforcement is limited and resources are not always accessible. April’s experience shows how these systemic challenges affect real families — and why prevention efforts matter so deeply.
“It’s hard to explain how it feels to learn that your home — the place where your children are supposed to be safest — is harming them,” April said. “But when the community comes together to invest in prevention, it changes lives.”
For Linda and Ray, moments like this confirm the importance of acting when the opportunity arises. “Lead poisoning is a tragedy, and it’s something that can be prevented,” Ray said. “If we can do something like this to help children stay healthy, we’re happy to do it. When everyone can be as healthy as possible, the whole community can succeed and prosper.”
Seeing the fountains in action has given April hope for her children and others like them.
“Now when my kids are outside our home, I know they will still be safe,” said April. “People like the Straubs are making that possible.”
While the Straubs’ designated fund at the Community Foundation provides annual support to 11 local organizations, this particular project resonated with them because it reflected their deep belief in building a strong foundation for children to thrive.
By joining their generosity with our LeadSafeCNY initiative, the Straubs helped make clean, safe drinking water a reality for thousands of Syracuse students — an investment that will ripple through families, schools and the community for generations to come.
