You can help solve illiteracy by joining the Book Club!
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It’s simple and easy: For only $30/month, Book Club members put free, high-interest books into children’s hands and hearts – and homes.
Thousands of children in our community are unable to afford books, and a majority of low-income homes have zero books in them. Having engaging books at home directly correlates to improved reading ability and better life outcomes. As the adage goes, the more you read, the better you get!
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This is why READ USA hosts free book events year-round at elementary schools, community events, and during our annual Book Fairs each spring.
By joining the READ USA Book Club, you make free books possible!
Join us to uplift literacy in our community through the Book Club. You are making a difference in the lives of thousands of students across Duval County and beyond!
Jeremy Meets a Fellow Author
Earlier this fall, Jeremy – the fictional namesake of our Jeremy’s Journey children’s book series who meets local leaders to learn and share their stories – met a fellow published author!
Florida Times-Union Columnist and published author Mark Woods shared with Jeremy how reading was a major part of his upbringing and inspired his life’s passion for the written word. And now, Jeremy’s telling of his story is available for purchase!
Mark shared how, growing up, both of his parents were excellent role models. His father was honored as Chaplain of the Year by the American Baptist Convention, and his mom was a social worker and teacher. Both were avid readers and instilled a love for reading in Mark and his two younger sisters. His mom would “zip through several books” during family vacations, which were usually road trips in the family station wagon with a pop-up camper, often visiting National Park Service sites.
In fact, those family vacations served as an additional inspiration in Mark’s life. Shortly after his 50th birthday family camping trip to Redwood National and State Parks – which sparked nostalgia from his childhood – Mark learned about the Society of Professional Journalists’ Eugene C. Pulliam Fellowship for Editorial Writing. Given to one writer in America each year, it gives a journalist an opportunity to take a year to “broaden his or her horizons” and take a break from daily responsibilities. Knowing the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service was coming up, he proposed spending a year in America’s national parks to learn and share what the next 100 years had in store for them. Mark was awarded the Fellowship, which led to him publishing a book about his experiences, Lassoing the Sun: A Year in America’s National Parks.
During 2012, Mark visited a national park each month, starting in January where the sun first hits America in Acadia National Park in Maine and completing his adventure at Haleakala National Park in Hawaii. It was at Haleakala volcano that Mark was inspired to the name for his book. Based on Hawaiian mythology, the phrase “lassoing the sun” became symbolic to him. To him, “it means seizing the day by making the most of it,” he told Jeremy.
You can read more about Mark by ordering his Jeremy’s Journey book here for a $20 donation!
READ USA was grateful to tell Mark’s story and was also honored to recognize him last year during our 2023 Peace in the Pages Presented by David & Monique Miller event as our Mark Landon Memorial Award for Democracy through Journalism recipient!
Thank you, Mark, for sharing your life experiences with Jeremy, our community, and far beyond Jacksonville through your journalism and Lassoing the Sun!
READ USA Participates in Catalyst Convening Series
The Nonprofit Center of Northeast Florida has launched a new resource for our community and READ USA alongside many other partners and nonprofit organizations are pleased to join and support the new Catalyst Convening Series.
Photo provided by the Nonprofit Center for Northeast Florida.
The Catalyst series provides a centralized, routinely updated source of data and indicators that span the social services sector, providing insight into “how our region is progressing toward its goals.” Paired with a series of open-invitation community convenings several times a year, each with a particular focus area, Catalyst helps “build a common understanding of the story of our community’s past and present” to help inform and drive our future.
Data and metrics are central components of READ USA’s Literacy Tutoring and other programs, so we are eager and excited to have a seat at the table for the Youth & Education focus area alongside many of our fellow nonprofits and community partners! We look forward to contributing READ USA’s insights to this movement with the ultimate goal of helping create broad-scale impact in our community.
Read more about the Catalyst Convening Series here.
National Philanthropy Luncheon Honors Legacy of Impactful Donors
Our CEO Dr. Rob Kelly, READ USA Board Member Carmen North, and Philanthropist Betty Berkman at the luncheon.
Our team was inspired and grateful to attend last weeks’ National Philanthropy Luncheon, hosted by the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Florida First Coast Chapter.
Recognizing philanthropists, donors, and volunteers for their spirit of giving and generosity in Northeast Florida, the event celebrated eight award honorees and gave a moving tribute to notable philanthropists who passed away during the past year.
As donors, advocates, and friends of READ USA, we were moved to see both Roseann Duran – who gave an exceptional legacy gift to READ USA – and David Stein memorialized so thoughtfully during the program. Roseann and David, alongside multiple others recognized, were powerful forces for good in our community. Both passionately supported education and youth initiatives, further empowering the next generation to “take the reins” in the years to come. Both invested heavily in our neighbors’ and community’s futures, and the direct and long-term ripple effects will be felt for many years to come. We were so grateful to have been a recipient of Roseann’s and David’s support and friendship over the years!
Congratulations to the eight award honorees! We loved the opportunity to hear directly from each of you about what moves you to spread the generosity and joy that you do:
- Paul Bosland, Lifetime Achievement
- Mayo Clinic, Outstanding Foundation
- Adam Chaskin, Outstanding Champion of Diversity
- Betty Berkman, Outstanding Philanthropist
- Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Florida Network Realty, Outstanding Corporation
- Lauren Baker, Outstanding Volunteer Fundraiser
- Ryan Smith, Next Generation Award
- Jacksonville Ace Group (ACE Hardware), Outstanding Small Business or Civic Organization
Thank you to AFP Florida First Coast Chapter for hosting this fantastic event and to presenting sponsor The Community Foundation for Northeast Florida for helping make it possible!
Read more about the National Philanthropy Luncheon and AFP Florida First Coast Chapter here.
Children’s Book: The Leaf Thief by Alice Hemming
Illustrated by Nicola Slater
Little squirrel loves life and thinks his habitat is the best! One morning he wakes to find that some of the leaves on his tree are missing. Squirrel goes on a journey to find the leaf thief and restore his tree to its original beauty. On his journey, we meet animals and connect to squirrel’s changing emotions. A great companion for educational units on the changing of seasons, The Leaf Thief is both endearing and informational.
The Leaf Thief includes a section about the fall season and the changes it brings around the world. Squirrel will be sure to show changing colors and fun animals all while searching for the culprit of the pilfered leaves!
Submitted by Kathi Hart, READ USA Lead Content Teacher
Parent Education Corner: Hands on Activities for Practicing the Alphabetic Principle
Children’s knowledge of letter names and shapes is a strong predictor of their success in learning to read. The alphabetic principle is the idea that letters and letter patterns represent the sounds of spoken language. Learning that there are predictable relationships between sounds and letters allows children to apply these relationships to both familiar and unfamiliar words, and to begin to read.
Here are five fun activities for practicing beginning word sounds.
- Label the house. Give your child a pad of post-it notes and a washable marker and tell him/her to label items in the home with the letter they start with. For example, b for books, t for table, d for door.
- Go on a scavenger hunt. Have your child roam around the house and look for items that start with a certain letter. For example, find everything in the house that starts with t (table, towel, tape, teddy).
- Find the letter relay. Foam bathtub letters are perfect for this. Put a basket of letters at one end of the house. Call out a word and have your child run to the basket, find the correct letter for the beginning sound, and run back. Burn off energy and practice letter sounds at the same time.
- Swat the letter. Foam bathtub letters work great for this activity. You will also need a fly swatter. To play the game, lay five or six of the foam letters on the floor at a time. Say the sound of one of the letters, then your child can SWAT it. Continue until he/she swats all the letters.
- Play I Spy. This activity is great because it can be played anywhere, it takes no preparation, and it can last as long or as short a time as needed. Take turns with your child. Choose an object that is in view and say “I spy with my little eye something that begins with b.” Your child gets three guesses, after each guess you answer yes or no, “Box,” “No,” “Banana,” “No,” “Basket,” “Yes”). You can give them the word or give clues to help them guess the word. Continue taking turns until the game ends.
Submitted by Kathi Hart, READ USA Lead Content Teacher
Do you have any questions or ideas for the Parent Education Corner? Anything you’d like to learn? Let us know here!