January 29, 2010

Milwaukee Bucks players Charlie Bell and Brandon Jennings helped distribute nearly 1,000 new books to children living in HACM housing on Thursday, January 28th.  The books were donated by Cheerios® Spoonfuls of Stories® and its partners First Book® and Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing during a “Read To Your Kids” celebration at the Hillside Family Resource Center.  The donations were made to programs in all 50 states, and the Housing Authority was the only program selected in Wisconsin. 

Studies have shown that the only measure that correlates significantly with school reading scores is the number of books in the home.  This donation is part of a broader effort by Cheerios and First Book to ensure that kids grow up with books.  Over the past eight years, Cheerios has donated $3.2 million to support First Book, an award-winning nonprofit that helps get brand new books to children from low-income families.

Cheers erupted when Bell and Jennings were introduced to the youth.  The two Bucks players read the story “Sharing: How Kindness Grows” before helping distribute 12 new books to each child.  The children will use the books in programs throughout the year.  The Milwaukee Public Library also had outreach staff present to provide information about their resources.

Ann Wilson, manager of the Resource Center welcomed children, parents and guests to the event, and Sherri Daniels, HACM commisioner and president of the Hillside Family Organization, served as MC.  “These books are a wonderful gift for the children and for the community,” said Daniels.  “This very generous donation makes it possible to bring the joy of reading to a host of families throughout the year.”