Greetings, Volunteers!

We had a blast reading with you on May 11^th!  This month 704 kids, 323 volunteers, 80 parents, and 20 teachers & staff joined us for a morning of “Fantasy, Folklore, and Fairytales.” 

Together we discovered a world of enchanted pottery, wishing sticks, dragons, princes, and even the occasional talking fox! Thank you for making these stories jump off the page and for lending your artistic talents to our craft time. We saw fantastic Mother’s Day cards, wishing sticks, and animal masks on display at Charles White Elementary! 

Volunteers also joined us for Legendary Bingo at Hamburger Mary's this past Wednesday night. We enjoyed a full house of bingo players and Reading to Kids fans.  Bingo Boy and his Bingo Hostesses, Willam and Roxy, kept the games hopping and the energy flowing. Our 10 bingo winners were delighted with the prizes they won, all of which were donated by generous supporters such as the LA Opera, Kendall's Brasserie and Bar, USC Bookstores, Chivas USA, Cabot Creamery Cooperative, In-N-Out, Tommy's, and Pink's Famous Hot Dogs.  Click here if you'd like to see Reading to Kids volunteer Chris Martin’s wonderful bingo photographs.

Perhaps the highlight of the evening, though there were many, was a surprise song and workout led by the one-and-only Richard Simmons!  To top it off, Mr. Simmons outbid himself on a pair of Disneyland Park-Hopper tickets—very exciting, indeed!  

If you missed out on Legendary Bingo or our May clubs, be sure to kick off summertime with our June 8^th “Superheroes and Super People” Reading Clubs! We’ll travel to planet Jurassica, meet a young Malawian inventor, and so much more! Grab a cape, get your Batmobile out of storage, and meet us next month.

Also, please be sure to mark your calendars for our upcoming June 18th Benefit Comedy Night and Silent Auction! This side-splitting show at the Hollywood Improv will feature the hilarious Doug Benson and many other entertaining comedians. 

Thank you for your support, and we look forward to seeing you soon!

Sincerely,

Katherine Norris

Literacy Coordinator

Greetings, Volunteers!

Thank you for making our March 9^th Reading Clubs truly special!  This month, 822 kids, 375 volunteers, 173 parents, and 19 teachers & staff joined us for a morning of “Music and Celebrations.” We also had musicians perform at each of our 7 school sites, and the kids and volunteers alike were thrilled by this wonderful treat! 

Our March book selection included tales of a mole with a penchant for rock ‘n’ roll, a budding young musician who can’t find an instrument that satisfies him, the Somali Civil War and rapper K’NAAN’s inspiring journey to the U.S., and many others. Your energy and enthusiasm helped bring these stories to life for the kids. As always, the crafts you created with the students also added to the morning excitement. As I looked around Esperanza Elementary—where I volunteered this month—kindergartners were proudly waving the tambourines they created with our inventive volunteers! 

Musician Quetzal Guerrero performing at Magnolia Elementary

 Of course, the reading clubs were made even more memorable by the appearance of musicians at all of our schools -- an annual tradition each March. From marching bands to folk groups, we had our musical bases covered.  At Esperanza Elementary the kids were so pleased by the performance that they even lined up for autographs! 

If you weren’t able to join us this month, don’t despair! Our April 13^th Reading Clubs are just around the corner, and we’ve got some great book selections headed your way for our “Amazing Animals and Interesting Environments” theme. I look forward to seeing you there! 

Sincerely,

Katherine Norris

Literacy Coordinator

Greetings, Volunteers!

Thank you for making our February 9^th Reading Clubs a success. This month, 826 kids, 351 volunteers, 163 parents, and 20 teachers & staff joined us for a morning of "Friendship and Family." We witnessed how unlikely duos sometimes make the greatest friends, experienced the courage of two best friends confronting racism in the Jim Crow era, discussed the ramifications of bullying, and so much more.

As many of you already know, our reading clubs aren’t just rewarding for the students, but for our volunteers as well. This month volunteer Ken Goldstein had such a wonderful time working with the students at Magnolia Elementary that he wrote a moving entry for his blog Corporate Intelligence Radio. You can read the entirety of his post  here, but I wanted to share the following excerpt with you:

These kids were amazing.  They have all the potential in the world.  They are ready to dream and learn and help each other and work hard.  As we drove home and I looked around at parts of Los Angeles where many of us don’t spend enough time, I wondered, where will these kids be in five years when they hit middle school?  In ten years when they are in high school?  Will they go to college?  Will they have the kinds of opportunities that will let their dreams come true?  I couldn’t know, but that’s what I wanted to happen.

Ken’s piece serves as a great reminder that our volunteers’ service goes beyond a single Saturday morning. When you read with a child you're making an important investment in his or her future success--that's why we believe that inspiring a love of reading now is so very important.  I thank Ken for sharing his thought-provoking piece with us!

Our March 9th Reading Clubs are just three weeks away, and musicians will be joining us at each school as part of our “Music and Celebrations” theme. We look forward to seeing you soon, and until then have a safe and happy President’s Day!

Sincerely,

Katherine Norris

Literacy Coordinator

Happy 2013, Volunteers!

  

Thank you for making our first reading clubs of 2013 a success! We know that many students and volunteers alike were battling flu and some unusually cold Los Angeles weather, but our January 12^th Reading Clubs sailed smoothly onward! 

  

With Martin Luther King, Jr. Day just around the corner, we also want to acknowledge our volunteers’ continued support of equality in education. Dr. King's message inspires our own work in underserved communities, and we can't accomplish our mission without our volunteers. 

This month, 793 kids, 380 volunteers, 113 parents, and 26 teachers & staff joined us for an afternoon of Discovery and Adventure. Together we experienced the joy of a child’s first snowfall, tamed pesky varmints with the likes of Pecos Bill, and journeyed through the Great Lakes! You helped bring these stories to life for the kids, as did your ingenious craft creations (cowboy hats, log cabins, and lassos were plentiful)! 

  

On Saturday we also gave away prize computers to 7 lucky students. Thanks to your generous donations of laptops, computer towers, keyboards, mice, and monitors, we were able to give the kids the wonderful gift of technology. These 7 lucky students were thrilled to receive their prize computers, and the smiles on their faces were unforgettable. 

Our February 9th Reading Clubs are almost here, and we’ve got a great book selection lined up. This month’s “Friendship and Family” theme provides the perfect opportunity to grab your best buddy or your family member and sign up for the 9^th. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Sincerely,

Katherine Norris

Literacy Coordinator