‘Heroes’ encourage love of reading

Just as Kiwanis clubs should be preparing to encourage literacy through February’s Read Around the World campaign, Key Club members are busy doing the same through their organization’s Winter Season of Service, Read & Lead.

A town “hero” reads to a child for Read & Lead, Key Club International’s Winter Season of Service.

Key Club members take time to read one-on-one to children for Read & Lead.

Read & Lead, founded by former Key Club International President Pettus Randall, is a one-on-one reading program that aims to demonstrate to children the joy of reading and develop in them a love of books.

Members of the Key Club at Grace Bible High School in Gadsden, Alabama, know the importance of turning children on to reading. Two Read & Lead projects—a reading day at an area mall and a reading corner at a local event—proved so successful the club decided a third effort was warranted.

“Those first two projects really let us see how much we enjoyed reading to children and working with them on their level,” says Maggie Hutchinson, the club’s immediate past president. “We decided we wanted to reach more kids the next time.”

The result was the club’s Books by the Bridge project. The event’s title stemmed from the group’s coup of securing a gazebo near a bridge and in a central location. Once a site was selected, promoting the event became the members’ next priority.

“The biggest thing for us was to find a place we could afford and that would be accessible to most people,” Maggie explains. “Once we had the date and location, we put fliers up around town and contacted radio stations and newspapers.”

Key Clubbers read to 20 children during the event and sent each child home with at least one book. Titles read aloud included Dr. Seuss books, the Back Yardigans, and Dora the Explorer books. The Key Club purchased books for the kids to take home, and the area chapter of Success by Six also donated books and toys to the cause. Guest readers included a fireman and a doctor, both of whom came to the event dressed in their work attire.

“We wanted to get some people there who are little kids’ heroes,” says Maggie. “When they showed up in their uniforms, it was really nice.”

In addition, the club provided lemonade and cookies and painted faces, creating a festive atmosphere.

“Parents loved the project,” Maggie says. “They were able to spend time talking with the other adults, and they said they were really impressed that a group of teenagers would take their Saturday to read to children.”

It seems the children who participated my have found some more heroes.