Share Literacy Receives $90,000 Grant from Kaiser Permanente 

Over 10,000 Holiday Book Donation to San Francisco Bay Area Organizations Serving Needy Families

LOS ALTOS, CA – Hoopoe Books Share Literacy Program (www.shareliteracy.org), which this year distributed 23,240 books to help over 16,500 underserved San Francisco/Bay Area children learn reading and thinking skills, has received a $90,000 grant from the Kaiser Permanente Community Grants Program.

Just in time for the holidays, the grant will help spread cheer to children with the donation of over 10,000 Hoopoe books to charitable organizations and schools serving needy families. The books (some bi-lingual English-Spanish) are earmarked for holiday gift/toy programs. An additional 7,500 books have been requested for give-away programs in early 2009.

Over 2,200 books were donated to San Francisco organizations. East Bay groups received 3,000 books and over 4,900 went to organizations in the South Bay.

A nationwide program first introduced in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2006, Share Literacy partners with early education agencies serving poverty level and low-income families, after-school programs and organizations providing ESL and adult literacy instruction. 

"Many of the children in our program are in great need," said Share Literacy Director Sally Mallam. "Thanks to Kaiser Permanente, it is particularly gratifying to help these children this holiday season, and even more so during the current economic situation that is affecting everyone. This is the fourth consecutive year that Kaiser Permanente has funded the Share Literacy Program and we are most appreciative of their generous, continued support," she said.                                    

Share Literacy requires additional funding to help an increasing number of agencies suffering cutbacks. So far 23 organizations have requested a Share Literacy Program of books and curricula. Administered by volunteers, there is an ongoing need for individual and corporate donors to cover the print and shipping costs of the books and classroom materials. Tax deductible donations can be made via www.shareliteracy.org.

Hoopoe Books Share Literacy Program is based on a rich tradition of storytelling from Afghanistan, Central Asia and the Middle East. The program provides books and curricula for preK-Grade 8 classrooms aligned to National and California State Standards, and developed around Hoopoe Books Teaching-Stories (www.hoopoekids.com).

Teaching-Stories, the name given to this literary genre, were almost unknown in Western cultures. Today, educators and psychologists recognize these stories’ unique ability to develop high-level thinking in both children and adults. While entertaining for children, the stories also help them to see things in new ways – they foster perception, intuition and self-confidence.

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Contact:
Sally Mallam, Director, Hoopoe Books
650-948-0243
Hoopoebooks@aol.com
Pete Verral, Media Relations, Share Literacy Program
415-831-4188/Cell: 415-871-1706
pverral@sbcglobal.net