JOHN LOK/SEATTLE TIMES

USA's Nicole Joraanstad, bottom, and teammate Natalie Nicholson, compete against Germany at a curling match during the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

VANCOUVER -- U.S. Olympic curler Nicole Joraanstad presented a $10,000 check to the Kent School District today, as one of five athletes supporting their hometowns through a partnership with Crest.

Joraanstad grew up in Kent and practiced at the Granite Curling Club, the only such club in Washington state. A 1999 graduate of Kentridge High School, she moved to Wisconsin when she was 18 to pursue curling. "I had a hunch it would get me in the Olympics someday," she said.

Joraanstad is co-captain of the U.S. Women's Curling Team and has a sponsorship deal with P&G, the maker of Crest toothpaste. The Kent district will receive the company's $10,000 donation for its health and physical education program.

It's one example of philanthropy happening at the Olympics, as athletes use their voices and resources to support various causes of their own and to help fellow athletes.

The gold medal for giving probably would go to snowboarder Hannah Teter, who is giving all of her prize and sponsorship money to charity, supporting work in Haiti, Kenya and Darfur.

After winning the gold medal in halfpipe at the Turin Olympics in 2006, she created a maple syrup called Hannah's Gold and has used proceeds to help fund charitable causes.

Teter has a partnership with the Christian charity World Vision, and has raised $185,000 so far for a project helping a community in Kenya with clean water and sanitation. About $130,000 of that comes from her contest winnings and another sizable chunk from Hannah's Gold.

Samsung, one of her sponsors, matches sales of her maple syrup dollar for dollar, and as part of its marketing deal gave $30,000 to her foundation last week.

Giving back is one of the main characteristics Samsung looks for in choosing athletes to sponsor, said Jose Cardona, communications manager for Samsung North America.

Teter also takes philanthropy where it's never gone before in "Panties with a Purpose." She created a line of underwear called Sweet Cheeks that gives $5 from every pair to a charitable cause -- this version helps Doctors Without Borders.

Scott Macartney, the ski racer and U.S. Ski Team member from Redmond I wrote about today in a story on sponsorships, has been supporting the World Cup Dreams Foundation, started by former team members Bryon Friedman and Erik Schlopy in 2005. The foundation gives members of the U.S. National Alpine Ski Team the chance to compete at the highest level by providing financial support and disability insurance coverage.

It makes sense that Macartney would choose to help others -- the two-time Olympian was raised by parents who volunteered in the ski patrol.