NEWS RELEASE
BORN TO READ
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Members of the Born to Read committee in Orillia and area were pleased to receive a cheque recently at the Orillia Public Library from Stephanie Hunter, president of the Orillia Kiwanis Club, for $1,500 to continue to provide two new children’s books to babies born at Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital.
This early literacy initiative has been gifting books to new babies since March 2019, and the community, both individuals and groups, have been generously donating funds. The Kiwanis club will donate annually to this worthwhile initiative to promote literacy in children.
The Born to Read committee is a partnership among the Orillia Public Library, the Ramara Public Library, Orillia Soldiers’ Memorial Hospital and Manticore Books. Members of the committee appreciate the generosity of donors locally and nationally, as well as the work of volunteers at the hospital who distribute the books. Also, the committee appreciates volunteers in the community who package the books with library brochures, which encourage library membership. Our committee was pleased to give two books and library brochures to the Olmstead family recently.
According to the March 1, 2022, document released by the Ontario Human Rights Commission called The Right to Read: Public Inquiry into Human Rights Affecting Students with Reading Difficulties, “Reading is necessary for many aspects of learning in school, and initial difficulties can increase over time and impede accessing the curriculum in other subjects … When students have difficulty learning to read, it can affect their confidence in their academic abilities and overall self-esteem, and lead to significant mental health problems.”
If you would like to donate to this worthwhile initiative please submit your donation in person to the Orillia Public Library or online at www.orilliapubliclibrary.ca and click on Born to Read in the ‘fund’ drop-down menu.
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