Read to Sydney’s new Bookmobile is on the move! On June 4th at 8:30 am, the South Lake Chamber of Commerce will host an official Ribbon Cutting in the Clermont City Center’s parking lot for the “Literacy on the Move” program. The public is invited to attend, and donations of new books are welcomed at the event.
Since 2011, Read to Syndey has encouraged children to read, “One tail at a time,” using therapy dogs in settings such as schools, libraries, and other community events. Thom Battisto, Founder of the nonprofit, has been raising funds to purchase the Bookmobile over the past several years and is excited to see his dream come to fruition. Read to Sydney has partnered with the Kiwanis Club of Clermont and has been a strong advocate of their BUG School Program (Bringing Up Grades) by providing bookmarks and pencils to students who participate in the program.“Our goals are to partner with other local businesses and events so the children can come and meet and read with our therapy dogs, make craft projects, and take a free book home with them,” says Battisto. “We will also serve as a mobile lending library and visit children whose parents may not have transportation to bring them to the local library.”
The new Dodge Ram Promaster City Cargo Van is wrapped in colorful graphics and can transport several hundred books at a time and will also serve as a safe way to transport therapy dogs to and from events.
Read to Sydney’s Bookmobile is scheduled to hit the road by mid-May and is currently in need of books to donate to children in the community. Donations are tax-deductible and can be made via PayPal at readtosydney@aol.com and checks can be mailed to: Read to Sydney, PO Box 1519, Minneola, Fl 34755. For more information, please visit https://readtosydney
