Lamar County United Way Holds Children’s Book Drive

The United Way of Lamar County announced today that they would be holding a Children’s Book Drive throughout June. You may drop donations of children’s books off at the United Way office located at 2340 Lamar Avenue. A donation box is out front. 

Repeated studies have shown that lack of access to books during the summer presents a drastic loss in reading skills, especially for kids in need, leading to what has been called “Summer Slide.” 

Children who are given access to books over the summer perform 35-40% better on reading achievement tests than those without books. 

Executive Director of the United Way of Lamar County Jenny Wilson stated, “At the United Way we fight for the education of all students in our community, and research shows that lower-income kids are the ones most affected by the lack of summer reading. We are hoping that this children’s book drive will help a little in alleviating “summer slide”, and we encourage everyone to donate books!” 

For more information on the Children’s Book Drive or any of the United Way of Lamar County’s programs, call 903-784-6642 or visit www.lamarcountyuw.org.