Kate Dyer-Seeley  

President Bush is up to his old antics, slashing funding, this time to Reading is Fundamental (RIF). I’m sure I’m on a list, or maybe multiple lists with how much I’ve been emailing and phoning my congressional representatives as of late. Usually I’m urging them to act on issues related to Alzheimer’s disease, but today it’s another issue that’s dear to my heart: reading. I was a lucky child, born to a mom who loved to read. We read in her queen bed, with green flannel sheets, each night before bed. She delighted in sharing her childhood favorites like Betsy, Tacy, Tib and The Great Brain. We went to the library on Friday afternoons and discovered new treasures like All-of-a-Kind-Family.After my mom was a few years into Alzheimer’s disease, she lost the ability to read. She carried a paperback book with her wherever she went. It was like a security blanket. I’ve often thought that short of missing out on the lives of her young grandchildren, she was most saddened by the loss of reading. I’m so thankful she fostered an early and lifelong love of reading for me. I’m passing her legacy on to Luke (as you can see he was “reading” long before he could walk).Alas, I know my early childhood experience was unique, which is why I encourage you to join me in contacting Congress to ensure that funding continues for RIF. RIF works to provide every child with the opportunity to read. They provide millions of books and literary resources to underprivileged children each year. President Bush’s 2009 budget eliminates RIF’s book distribution program. Follow this link to learn more about RIF, and contact Congress!

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 17th, 2008 at 7:57 am and is filed under Parenting, Reading. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.