Donations totalled nearly $575 in this year’s Reach A Reader campaign, a joint effort between Black Press and the Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy (CBAL) to raise funds for local literacy programs.
The $573.10 raised this year will help CBAL to fully fund a program that helps babies and young children develop language and listening skills.
“It’s going to allow us to have a full three sessions of Baby Goose,” said Joan Hedstrom, CBAL’s Creston community literacy co-ordinator. “That was our primary concern.”
Volunteers spent four hours, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m., at the Canyon Street Walkthrough and at Overwaitea Foods giving out today’s issue of the Advance in exchange for a donation to the Creston branch of the literacy organization.
Hedstrom spent the entire time at the Overwaitea table, which allowed her to connect directly with the community, a big benefit to the program.
“It was a really good experience for me because I got more of the tutors I need, and people are more familiar with the program now,” she said.
This was the fifth annual Reach A Reader, which has raised $4,069 for CBAL programs since its inception in 2011.
“We’re happy to see that this partnership continues to be a success,” said Advance editor Brian Lawrence. “It’s certainly a testament to the generosity of everyone in the Creston Valley, from donors to volunteers.”