READING LEGACIES
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Mission Statement
Our mission is to facilitate supportive relationships for children through family and friends reading aloud with them. Our vision is that all children will feel the security of caring adult relationships and develop a love of reading through the read aloud experience. Since 2009, we have served over 50,000 children, youth and families throughout San Diego. Our program models are replicable, volunteer-driven, and based on our premise that when you give to others, you gain yourself.
About This Cause
In this disruptive time for children, we must continue to provide education, time and love. Research shows that reading aloud with children is the single best predictor of their future success in reading. Yet, 1/3 of San Diego’s 4th graders read below grade level. We can’t allow this startling statistic to increase and families in need must feel our support. Reading aloud together and our year-round programs address both challenges. Youth Readers Volunteer youth create video-recorded stories and interactive activities for Head Start preschoolers to enjoy. Head Start provides our video links to their families. We provide children’s books to their homes. First Teachers Volunteer community leaders share about the importance of reading with children in monthly Zoom parenting workshops facilitated for Head Start fathers throughout San Diego. We help Head Start meet their mandated literacy instruction while providing support for parents in need. We also provide new children’s books for participant families. Book Bridges Volunteer community leaders record virtual messages of encouragement and read aloud guidance for fathers and mothers who are incarcerated or in drug addiction treatment. Parents then read to their children on video or phone using children’s books we provide. Grandparent Storybooks Volunteer youth read aloud on video to seniors living in senior facilities keeping them entertained and connected. We provide books to the facilities to accompany the youth’s videos. Story Corner Members from the San Diego community at large schedule appointments to read aloud to loved ones (while weaving in family history and values) at our new Story Corner expansion at San Diego’s Liberty Station. We are currently compiling an appointment interest list, though we are waiting for a flattening of the COVID curve to begin the one-on-one coaching and recording sessions. Through these 5 virtual outreaches operating across 2021, we anticipate generating hope, connection and education for at least 2,500 beneficiaries. We are accomplishing this with the help of a County-wide, multigenerational cohort of volunteers committed to serving families in need during this pandemic and beyond. With your help we can increase our community visibility and expand our programming capacity through the virtual offerings we’ve developed as our COVID response. Reading Legacies’ programs are educational and target an intergenerational population that is consistently in poverty, with 90% experiencing low-income levels. We focus on serving the most vulnerable children and youth in our community especially those in underserved, low-income areas (Title I Schools) and/or those who have an incarcerated parent or other family member. 56% of participants report being Hispanic, 17% Caucasian, 11% Multi-racial, and 9% African American, and 3% American Indian. Our objectives are: enhance the joy of reading for children/youth; foster/maintain bonds between all ages by spending time with each other reading aloud; provide role modeling opportunities for at-risk youth and incarcerated parents; gain satisfaction from giving of oneself through an intergenerational experience; demonstrate the power of reading aloud for developing meaningful relationships and life-changing attitudes about reading; increase awareness of the importance of reading to children.