It’s sweet, delicious, and nutritious — and will hydrate the Vikings basketball team for the next few months.

Once Upon a Coconut is the official beverage sponsor for this season’s boys team after junior and power forward Jaxon Paulsen wrote an impassioned letter to the company.

“In a class discussion one day it just arose that there’s this new coconut water that is a good electrolyte replacement, and is probably a lot healthier than many of the sports drinks out there that are filled with sugars and excess chemicals that really don’t treat the body with the respect that an athlete should for optimal performance,” said Orcas High School teacher and basketball coach Corey Wiscomb. “Jaxon presented the idea, ‘wouldn’t it be cool if we wrote to them and they sponsored us as a team for basketball?”

Wiscomb says they all chuckled about it for a moment, and then he realized it could be a learning experience. He sat down with Paulsen and went over writing tools and how to construct a compelling message.

“He was engaged in the experience and wanted to get the most out of it,” Wiscomb said. “I said, let’s ride that wave! He finished a very nice formal letter requesting them to be a sponsor of our 2025-2026 basketball team.”

Paulsen surprised Wiscomb by taking it a step further and submitting the letter to Once Upon a Coconut. He explained that he likes the product because it is an alternative to Gatorade.

“When I reached out to Once Upon a Coconut, I said that I really enjoy their drink and I would love it if they would be willing to sponsor our team to provide quintessential hydration for our players,” he said.

A week later, Paulsen received the following response: “Thanks so much for reaching out and thinking of Once Upon a Coconut for your event—it really means a lot to us! We can’t wait to support the Orcas High School Boys Basketball season with a product donation of 20 cases.”

The company, based in Florida, employs farmers in Ben Tre, Vietnam, to harvest coconuts, and its premium coconut water contains naturally occurring electrolytes such as potassium, calcium and magnesium. Once Upon a Coconut’s headquarters is in Florida. For every case sold, it donates 10% to a charity selected by peers each month. It is also a member of Greenspark, an organization that helps businesses with sustainability.