First Book-UC-Raymond Walters has been awarded a $2,500 grant from the Spaulding Foundation, according to Helen Kegler, who is Chair of First Book-UC-RWC. The grant will provide 95 at-risk children in the Greater Cincinnati area with one new book per month over the course of a nine-month school year, Kegler said.
First Book is a national non-profit organization whose single mission, according to Kegler, is to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. Kegler said that it is RWC’s dedication to literacy development and students’ devotion to serving the community that makes the First Book program a “natural fit” for RWC.
Kegler was involved in the formation of First Book UC-RWC last year, making it one of around 30 Campus Advisory Boards made up of dedicated volunteers. “We work with existing local literacy programs,” Kegler said, “to distribute new books to children who, for economic reasons, have little or no access to books.”
The Spaulding Foundation is based in Cincinnati and dedicated to providing services to children in need, bettering the educational system, and promoting youth development.
For more information on First Book or to learn how you may contribute or become involved, contact Helen Kegler at 745-5691.