Raising a Reader MA and Unifirst Announce Partnership to Support Early Literacy
September 12 2017 - 9:21AM
Raising A Reader Massachusetts (MA) and UniFirst Corporation
(NYSE:UNF) have announced a new partnership to bring the early
literacy organization’s signature Red Bag Book program to UniFirst
employees, providing them with access to children’s books at no
charge and the opportunity for parents to learn reading techniques,
regardless of their reading comfort level.
Raising A Reader MA and UniFirst share a similar commitment to
supporting the community. The Raising A Reader MA Red Bag Book
program supplies participants with bags filled with high quality,
culturally appropriate children’s book. By providing tools that
focus on education and early literacy, the goal is to eliminate the
opportunity gap that impacts success in school and beyond.
“The launch of our first corporate program validates our work to
address the issue of low reading proficiency,” said Christine Ward,
interim executive director of Raising A Reader MA. “UniFirst is a
philanthropic leader, focused on family and building a strong and
inclusive corporate culture. This is just the beginning and we
expect other corporations to follow, allowing otherwise isolated
groups to be able to access our critical early literacy
resources.”
As part of this partnership, Raising A Reader MA will honor
Cynthia Croatti, executive vice president of UniFirst, at their
annual Leadership in Literacy Award Breakfast. The award recognizes
business leaders who inspire through their leadership and utilize
their influence to change lives through literacy and learning.
Croatti will be honored for her support of early literacy and focus
on innovative nonprofit/corporate partnerships.
“We are fortunate to have wonderfully diverse employees at the
foundation of our business,” said Croatti. “By offering an enhanced
employee benefit that assists with developing early literacy
skills, we’re helping to improve their lives and the community, as
well as preparing the next generation of readers and leaders.”
“We’re honored to have Cynthia recognized with the Leadership in
Literacy Award. Raising A Reader MA has created strong programs
that allow families and caregivers to understand the important role
they play in early child development,” said Adam Soreff, director
of marketing and communications at UniFirst. “Cynthia has been a
strong supporter of early literacy and corporate partnerships with
nonprofits. This award acknowledges her accomplishments and
continued focus on providing employee benefits that strengthen the
current and future workforce,” he added.
Raising A Reader MA will also recognize House Speaker Robert A.
DeLeo with the Legislator of the Year Award for his tireless work
in supporting early education and care. The public support
continues to strengthen this corporate/nonprofit partnership to
eliminate the opportunity gap. The Leadership in Literacy Award
Breakfast will take place October 27, 2017, at the Mandarin
Oriental, Boston from 7:30–9:00 a.m. For additional information on
the event sponsorship opportunities, and how to purchase tickets or
place an ad, please Click Here
(www.501auctions.com/raisingareaderma), or visit
http://raisingareaderma.org/.
About Raising A Reader MARaising A
Reader MA is an evidence-based early literacy program that helps
families of young children (birth through age six) develop,
practice, and maintain habits of reading together at home. Raising
A Reader MA’s core program increases access to books and offers
support for strengthening the culture of reading at home. The model
is driven by more than 25 years of research that shows the most
significant factor impacting a child’s academic success is being
regularly read to by a parent or other primary adult caregiver
before starting kindergarten.
About UniFirst Corporation Headquartered
in Wilmington, Mass., UniFirst Corporation is a North
American leader in the supply and servicing of uniform and workwear
programs, as well as the delivery of facility service programs.
Together with its subsidiaries, the company also provides first aid
and safety products, and manages specialized garment programs for
the cleanroom and nuclear industries. UniFirst manufactures its own
branded workwear, protective clothing, and floorcare products, and
with 250 service locations, 300,000 customer locations, and 14,000
employee Team Partners, the company outfits nearly 2 million
workers each business day. UniFirst is a publicly held company
traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol
UNF and is a component of the Standard & Poor's 600 Small Cap
Index. For more information, contact UniFirst at 800.455.7654
or visit UniFirst.com.
CONTACTS:
Adam Soreff,
UniFirst, Director of
Communications 978.527.4349
asoreff@unifirst.com
Christine WardRaising A Reader
MA617.292.2665christine@raisingareaderma.org
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