Mission Statement
First Book is a national nonprofit organization with a single mission: to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books.
We provide an ongoing supply of new books to children participating in community-based mentoring, tutoring, and family literacy programs.
Books stir the senses, inspire the imagination, and spark a love of reading that can last a lifetime. Access to books is essential to reading development, yet many children from low-income families have no books at home or in the childcare centers they attend. There are millions of children waiting for your help.
Description
First Book's model is national in scope and local in impact. In our first year, First Book distributed approximately 12,000 books in three communities. Since that time, First Book has distributed more than 40 million books to children in over 1300 communities around the country.
First Book-Charlotte, launched as an all-volunteer local advisory board in February of 2006, serves the more than 25,000 children living in poverty in the Charlotte Metro Area.
Through partnerships with major publishing companies, we are able to provide free brand new books to children from low-income families for about $2.00 per book.
Grant cycles allow for recipient programs to receive between 6 - 12 new books per child per year. Choosing from First Book catalogs containing thousands of titles, teachers, mentors & facilitators are able to select new books that best meet the needs of the children they are serving.
