Planet Ford in Spring was proud to be part of an early-reading initiative. The dealership donated $2,000 worth of books to Anderson Elementary of Spring ISD. In 2015, Ford joined First Book, a nonprofit organization, which provides brand-new books and school supplies to young students. In collaboration with First Book, Ford Motor Company Fund and Elena Ford have distributed more than 100,000 books to young readers.
“It means the world to us,” said Anderson principal Kristin Falcon. “It gives us an opportunity to not just have the kids exposed to books in their classrooms as an instructional tool, but to actually give them books to read for enjoyment, and to take that love of literacy home to share with their families.”
This week’s donation was comprised of hundreds of grade-appropriate books for all first-, second- and fifth-graders at Anderson –– which the students can use in class and also take home to keep and share with their families and friends.
Planet Ford has been a longtime partner with Spring ISD, sponsoring prize giveaways for district Teacher of the Year award winners, and in 2019 entering into a naming-rights agreement that helps support operations at the district’s Planet Ford Stadium and the adjacent Randall Reed Community Center, both built as part of Spring ISD’s 2016 bond program.
When the dealership began learning more about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on literacy and educational development, they joined forces with Ford Fund and First Book to help Title 1 schools combat pandemic learning losses. Planet Ford sponsored a book donation at Anderson last spring for select grades, followed up by this week’s donation to reach even more students.
“We believe in pouring back into our future, and these kids are our future,” said Planet Ford Community Relations Director Lauren Lothringer during her visit to Anderson on Wednesday to help hand out bags of books to students. “So any opportunity that we have to give back and really promote growth and learning, we’re all over it.”
“The partnership between Randall Reed’s Planet Ford and Spring ISD is long-running, which is why it was a no-brainer when selecting Anderson Elementary,” Lothringer said in a statement. “We are thrilled to be returning again this year and blessing the Gators with more books!”
Read more at https://news.springisd.org/2022/01/anderson-elementary-receives-book-donation-from-planet-ford-and-first-book/