Decorated crates with free books for parent and children are starting to pop up at area schools and businesses.
The first two were placed at the Hub Head Start and Woodlawn Prep last week and help promote literacy through the Vroom initiative.
Lacey Montgomery, kindergarten readiness ambassador for Vroom and community ambassador for Save the Children, said she hopes to involve as many schools and businesses as she can in the efforts.
“The book crates are provided by Vroom, which is under the umbrella of Save the Children,” she said. “It’s a way to offer literacy packets to parents and children in Marion County. It’s one of the subtle ways to encourage parents and children to read.”
Montgomery said the crates help encourage parents and grandparents to spend time with children reading and using everyday moments to learn.
“We have books and tips for parents to take home and develop libraries,” she said. “We give them information on how the brain develops. Parents can keep the books. We will continuously update them.”
It’s also hoped that local churches and businesses will contribute to the program and in return; Vroom will build a crate that the business can decorate in a theme and keep on hand to help promote literacy.
“We’re looking to saturate Marion County,” Montgomery said. “These are free crates to sit out in areas where people can see them and take the books and information. We hope it attracts people to Vroom events and events at the Columbia-Marion County Public Library.”
Marley Mansfield of the Columbia-Marion County Public Library said the Vroom initiative goes hand-in-hand with library programs designed to encourage reading.
“We have a program to encourage parents to read to children,” she said. “We’d like to give the children exposure to 1,000 books before kindergarten. We have board books and picture books available for children at the library to give to them. The kit includes a reading record. For every 25 books you read, you get a free picture book. For every 100 books you read, you receive a hardcover book.”
Pictured Above: Pictured with a Vroom crate at the Hub Head Start Center are, from left, Yolanda Minor, program specialist for Save the Children, Marley Mansfield of the Columbia-Marion County Public Library, Lacey Montgomery, kindergarten readiness ambassador for Vroom and community ambassador for Save the Children, and Sandra Hilbert, center administrator for Hub Head Start. | Photo by Mark Rogers
