Dollar General Literacy Foundation supports summer literacy
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation recently awarded Matheson Memorial Library a $1,250 grant to support summer literacy as part of awarding more than $43,000 in literacy grants to Wisconsin nonprofit organizations, libraries and schools. The funds are aimed at supporting adult, family and summer literacy programs within a 20-mile radius of a Dollar General store or distribution center across the 44 states it serves, and plan to positively impact the lives of nearly 2,200 Wisconsinites.
The grant award to Matheson is part of more than $7.5 million in grants awarded to nearly 900 schools, nonprofits and organizations across the 44 states that Dollar General serves. The grants support schools, public libraries and nonprofit organizations in implementing new or expanding existing literacy efforts and are awarded based on applications received. Funding can be used to purchase new technology, equipment, books, materials or software to enhance literacy programs.
The grant was awarded to the youth services department at Matheson Memorial to expand summer reading in an outreach program, Library on the Go! Look for the youth services librarians out and about in the community this summer as they visit summer school and other locations featuring books, crafts, stories, and summer reading.
“This grant will help us reach kids who can’t make it to the library during the summer or have other barriers to accessing books,” Jennifer Wharton, Youth Services Librarian, said.
“Dollar General is excited to provide these organizations with funding to support literacy and education throughout the 44 states we serve,” Todd Vasos, Dollar General’s CEO, said.
“Providing these grants and supporting the communities we call home reflects our mission of Serving Others and it’s rewarding to see the impact these funds have,” Vasos added.
The Dollar General Literacy Foundation supports initiatives that help others improve their lives through literacy and education. Since its inception in 1993, the Foundation has awarded more than $135 million in grants to nonprofit organizations, helping more than 8.6 million individuals take their first steps toward literacy or continued education.
For more information about the Dollar General Literacy Foundation and its grant programs, visit www.dgliteracy.org.
