Nonprofits Working Together to Bring
Brighter Futures to Children
Allentown, PA – Sept. 22, 2021 – Lehigh Valley Reads, a regional campaign operated by PBS39 and the United Way, aims to ensure all Lehigh Valley students read on grade level by the end of third grade by 2025. The Allentown Rescue Mission’s Books to the Rescue program collects book donations to promote literacy and learning for children that lack sufficient at-home resources.
The program also benefits the men of the Allentown Rescue Mission who collect and organize the donated books for distribution, enabling them to give back to the community that has generously blessed them.
The Allentown Rescue Mission recently made its second donation of books to Lehigh Valley Reads, bringing its total contribution to approximately 900 books.
Lehigh Valley Reads presents each family it assists with 10 books to start an in-home library. These libraries help children expand their vocabulary and reading comprehension. With its donations, the Allentown Rescue Mission and Lehigh Valley Reads can provide 90 deserving families with resources to aid in future academic success.
“Lehigh Valley Reads is committed to ensuring as many families as possible have books at home. Book donations are the life force of our building home libraries initiative and partners like the Allentown Rescue Mission are helping us to move the needle on literacy one child at a time,” said Angela Zanelli, Lehigh Valley Reads Campaign Director.
Additionally, the Allentown Rescue Mission has provided more than 1,300 books to local elementary schools. The donations allow teachers to send books home with students for continued learning or strengthen the school’s library.
To learn more about Lehigh Valley Reads and the Allentown Rescue Mission, please visit: https://lehighvalleyreads.org/ and https://www.allentownrescuemission.org/, respectively.
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About Lehigh Valley Reads
Lehigh Valley Reads is a regional literacy campaign committed to ensuring that all Lehigh Valley students read on grade level by the end of third grade by 2025. This collective impact initiative is powered by United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley and PBS39. With over 100 community partners working together to maximize resources, Lehigh Valley Reads is a collective impact initiative with five key focus areas: early childhood education, summer learning, school attendance, trauma-informed classrooms and Community Schools.