KANSAS CITY, Kan. — Each student at Lindbergh Elementary School in Kansas City, Kansas, received a free book Tuesday as part of a milestone moment for an intiative designed to encourage literacy.
The Scripps Howard Fund is the nonprofit arm of KSHB 41 News’ corporate owner. For the past seven years it’s raised money to buy books for children through its “If You Give a Child a Book…” campaign. Tuesday, the organization was able to distribute its one millionth book.
The nonprofit partnered with Scholastic and author Dav Pilkey to celebrate the milestone. Pilkey, the author of the Dog Man graphic novel series, donated 250,000 copies of his newest book Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea to the campaign. While the actual millionth book went to a school in Nashville, the Scripps Howard Fund distributed the Dog Man books to schools with which it works across the country to commemorate the event.
Locally, Lindbergh Elementary in Kansas City, Kan., and JA Rogers Elementary in Kansas City, Missouri, received the donations.
“It’s really important [to read] because it helps you learn and it grows your brain,” said Alex, a 5th grade student at Lindbergh.
The “If You Give a Child a Book…” campaign is designed to help children build libraries at their own homes where they can read at any time.
“It’s great to have books they’re drawn to like graphic novels. It’s colorful, it’s engaging,” explained Lindbergh principal Dr. Brooke Brutto. “They get to keep it in their book bag; they don’t have to return it to our library. They can read it time and time again.”
To make a donation to the cause, visit the fundraiser’s website.
