On Monday I told you about this week’s charitable mission to give a little bit of money away each day to a nonprofit that could really use the help. A little goes a long way and I may not have a lot to give but you all can help. Comment on this post with your ideas for other charities to support so that other readers can get ideas. The top five suggestions will go up in a poll Friday for you all to pick who the last $25 goes to. Plus every comment to each day’s post earns the organization another 25 cents in donation (up to a max of $40 for each day’s post – can’t afford more than that guys). And please feel free to go back and comment on posts from past days (I really need more recommendations for Friday’s five picks).
Now here is today’s selection, which I have chosen in honor of my late Nana, an amazing woman who was a dedicated reading teacher and literacy champion in New Zealand her whole life: First Book
First Book is a nonprofit organization with a single mission: to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. We provide an ongoing supply of new books to children participating in community-based mentoring, tutoring, and family literacy programs.
First Book was founded in 1992. The First Book model was developed to leverage the work of local heroes who reach children through existing literacy programs in a variety of settings, such as Head Start centers, libraries, soup kitchens, churches, housing projects, and afterschool initiatives. Working through this vast network of organizations, First Book plays a critical role in transforming the quality of preschool and after-school programs nationwide.
First Book’s model is national in scope and local in impact. In our first year, First Book distributed approximately 12,000 books in three communities. Since that time, First Book has distributed more than 50 million books to children in over 3,000 communities around the country.
The awesome news is that since I will make the donation before December 31 (and if you would care to donate as well), First Book’s partner, Random House, will match every donation, book-for-book, up to a million books.
To read more about First Book’s costs and expenses or to research any potential charity, visit Charity Navigator, a non-profit that reports on charitable organizations so you can make sure that you drive your donations to the organizations that will best utilize those funds.
