The mission of Raising Readers in Story County is to improve language and literacy development in children
from birth to age eight and nurture healthy parent-child relationships.
December 2016
"There is more treasure in books than in all the pirate's loot on Treasure Island"-Walt Disney
Scarf Making Activity at Eastwood
This month at StoryTime at Eastwood Apartments, children selected
fleece fabric to make homemade gifts for their friends and family. This
annual December event allows the children to create something for
someone they love and then also make a scarf for themselves to keep.
Books about snowmen and winter were read together and the children
made bagel snowmen complete with scarfs for their snack! We thank
Kim Zahnle for purchasing and cutting all of the fleece fabric,
Community Housing Initiatives, Inc for their partnership, and all of our
2016 Eastwood volunteers who help make this program possible!
Showing off her snowman snack and
present!
Children wrapping their new presents
Support Raising Readers in
Story County!
We have had an exciting year at Raising
Readers in Story County! Your support,
combined with the support of others in our
community, allows us to continue to put quality
books in the hands of children in Story County
and provide early childhood literacy programs to
families. This year we are expanding to make
an even greater difference. We will increase
from 16,000 to 18,000 books available to
children in our programs. We will offer new
school readiness and out-of-school reading
tutoring programs in Nevada and Zearing. We
will serve more families living with low incomes.
Please consider contributing to Raising Readers in Story County. For the third year, an
RRSC supporter will match your donation when you give by January 31 to both the Annual
Fund and the Endowment Fund. The Annual Fund helps meet today's needs, while the
Endowment Fund ensures we can provide our services long into the future.
Your support of early literacy is an investment in the future of our children, our families, and
our communities. Please give today!
Bethesda Holiday Basket Book Donation
Raising Readers in Story County was excited to give free, quality children's books away at
the Bethesda Food Pantry's Thanksgiving Food Basket distribution in November. Families were
able to choose a book for each child in their family to take home as Forever Books. RRSC will be
at the Christmas Food Basket distribution on December 16 to give away more books!
Thank you RRSC Board Members Sue Seaton, Jane
Halliburton, and Jen Dieter for volunteering in
November!
THANK YOU!
We thank all of our generous donors, volunteers, and
partners who are helping to create brighter futures for
Story County children and families.
Donations like yours support our programs.
Volunteers are working with twelve Ames students in our
Harrison Barnes Reading Academy this fall! This
program partners RRSC and the Ames Public Library to offer after school literacy tutoring for
children on early-out Wednesdays. Each week, children read with and to their volunteers, write
stories about their week and favorite activities, and more.
If you would like to help support the vital programs offered by Raising Readers in Story County
please make a gift today!
Volunteer Spotlight
Dan Franklin
'I originally thought that to become a volunteer
for Raising Readers I should have experience
teaching lower elementary kids. Fortunately for
me the staff helps us rookies and those with no
teaching experience work with the kids. It is very
rewarding and helps put into perspective what is
really important for our future'.
Dan Franklin began volunteering for Raising Readers in Story County this past summer as a Reading
Buddies volunteer. After first hearing about RRSC at an Ames Town and Country Kiwanis meeting in
March, he decided that after he retired in June 2016, he would like to volunteer for our organization, and as
of December, he has volunteered almost 40 hours, volunteering for K-3 Summer Reading Buddies, ACPC
Reading Buddies, and Harrison Barnes Reading Academy!
Dan grew up in NW Iowa and graduated from ISU expecting to teach middle school math or history. After
graduation, he started working for the Iowa Department of Transportation and retired after almost 44 years
there in June. Dan calls it 'A career that I really enjoyed but it wasn't teaching'. Dan has two grown children,
a daughter who works in Washington, D.C., and a son who works in Madison, Wisconsin.
Dan believes in community service and helping others, so when he began to consider retirement, he knew
that he would be staying in Ames and volunteering in the Ames Community. 'It was just a matter of where I
would be spending my time with the goal of "making a difference"'. Dan shared how he became aware of
our volunteer opportunities. 'As a member of the Town and Country Kiwanis Club, I have many
opportunities to hear about and participate in the wide variety of volunteer programs and activities in the
Ames area. Earlier this year Kim spoke to our club about RRSC and the importance of being exposed to
reading at a very early age, learning to read in lower elementary and the connection between reading at grade
level and success into high school. That's when I decided that within the many RRSC programs, there
would be one that I can commit to into retirement'. And he's been involved ever since!
When asked what he loves most about volunteering with RRSC, Dan shares, 'After spending 44 years
working with adults (most of it dealing with policy, legislative and program activities), I enjoy the excitement
and enthusiasm that the kids bring as they work on projects or puzzles, as they listen to or read books or as
they learn something new'. The children Dan works with love telling him stories about his day, and he
always comes in with a smile on his face, ready to work with his preschooler or school-aged mentee.
Thank you, Dan, for your wonderful service to our organization!
ACPC Reading Buddies
Our ACPC Reading Buddies preschoolers get to participate in science experiments so
that they can recall the activities and tell stories to their volunteers about what they saw, did,
and learned. November's experiment was EXPLOSIONS!
Sam pours vinegar into the bottle of baking
soda
Watching the explosion!
Dates to Remember
RRSC Office Closed
Friday, December 23
Monday, December 26
Monday, January 2
Eastern Story County Step Into Storybooks
Saturday, April 1 9am-12pm
Central Elementary School, Nevada
Step Into Storybooks
Saturday, April 8 9am-12pm
Ames Public Library
Eastern Story County Step Into
Storybooks, 2016
#WeekendReading
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to get
inspiration each Friday on a book to read with your family!
If you have a favorite #weekendreading book that you read
as a family, email [email protected] and
we may feature it in the coming weeks!
RRSC Wish List
We are so grateful for our volunteers and
supporters and have a few things that we are
looking to add to our organization. If you would like
to donate, please contact us at [email protected].
Wish List
Korean/Mandarin/Cantonese language
children's books
Spanish language children's books
Fabric tote bags you know, the ones that are in a pile in your closet!
Fans (box, swivel, etc)
Tote bags with handles
help us carry books easily!
Visit Our Website
Raising Readers in Story County| 515-520-8686 | [email protected]
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