Syracuse Rotary Foundation contributes $70,000

Reading to your child from birth is one of the most important activities you can do to ensure he or she is prepared for school and also prepared for life, research tells us. Sharing reading time not only helps introduce your baby to language but also aids in proper brain development and assists in strengthening your bond as parent and child.

The Literacy Coalition of Onondaga County (OCLC) serves as the local champion for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Children in the county, from birth to their fifth birthday, can be enrolled in the program. Once registered, the child will receive a new, age-appropriate book sent to their home every month until their fifth birthday. That’s sixty books before they start kindergarten at no cost to enrolled families.

Syracuse Rotary’s long history of supporting literacy programs for both children and adults goes back decades. The 111-year-old club was one of the original organizations to support Imagination Library program.

A formal presentation was made at the 1926 Bistro - Drumlins during the first official in-person luncheon meeting of Syracuse Rotary since March of 2020. During the presentation, the club made good on their promise to donate $70,000 to the program — which mails books to over 15,000 kids each month and has distributed more than half a million age-appropriate books over the years. It was a tremendous way to welcome Rotarians and guests back to face-to-face meetings.