RIF’s Program of the Month Initiative Honors the Ongoing Efforts of Local Programs to Promote Children’s Literacy.

Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), the nation’s oldest and largest children and families’ literacy nonprofit organization, has named the Page Ahead Children’s Literacy Program in Seattle, Wash. as its National Program of the Month award recipient for March, 2010.

“The Page Ahead program’s longstanding dedication and hard work to couple reading books with positive experiences is what RIF’s mission is all about,” said Carol H. Rasco, president and CEO of Reading Is Fundamental. “RIF is proud to honor this program for the work they have done on behalf of children throughout the State of Washington.”

Page Ahead Children’s Literacy Program (Seattle, Wash.).
20 years ago, Page Ahead began with a single book drive and grew to a program servicing 55,000 at-risk children per year. Since their founding, more than 1.7 million new books have been distributed to children from birth to age 12. In addition, the program has partnered with more than 20 preschools, elementary schools, early childhood centers, migrant centers, homeless shelters, teen parenting programs, and social service agencies across Washington.

Jackie Crowther, the RIF Coordinator and first RIF Ambassador from Washington works with Page Ahead to encourage parents to get involved and children to read by holding motivational and fun activities. In January 2010, several children from Page Ahead were invited to attend the Pre-Olympic National Skating Championship where the children were able to meet the U.S. Women’s National Figure Skating Champion Rachael Flatt, who spoke to them about the joy of reading.

RIF’s Programs of the Month initiative was launched to honor the ongoing efforts of local programs to fulfill the mission of RIF, which depends on programs like these to promote children’s literacy. Thanks to thousands of volunteers, children all across the country are discovering the joy of reading.

About RIF
Reading Is Fundamental, Inc. (RIF), founded in 1966, motivates children to read by working with them, their parents, and community members to make reading a fun and beneficial part of everyday life. RIF’s highest priority is reaching underserved children from birth to age 8. Through community volunteers in every state and U.S. territory, RIF provides 4.4 million children with 15 million new, free books and literacy resources each year. For more information and to access reading resources, visit RIF's website at www.rif.org.