Wal-Mart Gives Away Free Books to Local Students

Just in time for Spring Break, our local Wal-Mart store gave away almost 600 books to local second and third grade students. Why?  Because Wal-Mart is supporting the Happily Ever After Project, which was started by the Washington County Youth Foundation in 2010.

“We love partnering with Washington County Community Foundation especially on this project because we feel passionately about reading. In our age of technology, the ability to read is still the foundation of a lifetime of learning,” stated Mike King, Salem Wal-Mart Store Manager.

King went on to say, “I love kids and I really enjoyed visiting the classroom and reading to Ms. Johnson’s class. They still have what we all should never lose:  The belief that you can do anything.  Being able to read is the key to open every door and achieving any goal you set.”

Members of the Washington County Youth Foundation started the Happily Ever After Project to promote a love of reading in every child’s life. Since 2010, with the help of generous sponsors like Wal-Mart, they have given away almost 12,000 books to local elementary students.

Additionally, the Washington County Community Foundation started the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in 2015. Through this program, children in Washington County from birth to age five can register FREE and receive an age appropriate book mailed to their home every month.  This service has over 900 children registered in our community. 

Programs like these happen because of generous donors. Individuals, businesses and organizations all working together are supporting the Happily Ever After Project and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library and teaching our very young children to learn to love to read.

If you would like to support these programs, contact the Washington County Community Foundation at 883-7334 or director@wccf.biz.  For just $26.00 a year (Fifty cents a week), you can sponsor a child in the Dolly Parton Imagination Library for an entire year.  Contact the Foundation to learn more.

The mission of the Washington County Community Foundation is to engage people, build resources and strengthen our community. Visit the website at www.wccf.biz and like the Foundation on Facebook.