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Patriots Wide Receiver and Children’s Book Author Malcolm Mitchell inspires Children at Brophy Elementary School in Framingham, MA
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, October 31, 2017
Framingham, MA, October 31, 2017 – National non-profit literacy and mentoring organization Read to a Child®, Malcolm Mitchell’s youth literacy initiative Read with Malcolm and the New England Patriots Foundation teamed up as Malcolm read his children’s book “The Magicians Hat” to first graders today at the Brophy School in Framingham, Mass. The New England Patriots wide receiver, children’s book author and founder of Read with Malcolm was joined by Read to a Child CEO Paul Lamoureux, New England Patriots Director of Community Relations Donna Spigarolo and Framingham Public School leaders to highlight the importance of reading and mentoring to boost literacy skills and self-confidence among underserved public school students. Photos from the event can be accessed from a link at the end of the release.
At today’s event each first grader received a personal copy of “The Magician’s Hat” and was then dazzled by the magic of Patriots magician, John Logan. Malcolm addressed the ‘magic’ of books and the importance of reading with the students, then went on to read his book aloud. After the first grade departed, Malcolm inspired the entire 5th grade class with his personal story and with the importance of being a mentor and ‘reading ambassador’ to younger students. At the conclusion of the event, Malcolm received Read to a Child’s Youth Literacy Award for his tireless work advocating the importance of reading among underserved children across the country.
“It’s fantastic to partner with Read to a Child and the New England Patriots Foundation to highlight the importance of reading and mentoring,” said Malcolm Mitchell, founder of Read with Malcolm and Share the Magic Foundation. “I am excited to share with underserved students how reading became so important in my life, and especially pleased to make books more interesting and available to them. Every child deserves something special and hopefully the copy of “The Magician’s Hat” that each student received today will spark some ‘magic’ in their lives and will highlight the importance of reading in their future success.”
“We are so proud to support Malcolm Mitchell for highlighting the importance of reading and Read to a Child for its innovative model of utilizing volunteers from area corporations to act as reading mentors in public schools,” said New England Patriots Director of Community Relations, Donna Spigarolo. “These efforts are perfectly aligned with the Patriots Foundation support of under-served populations, as well as reading, mentoring, volunteerism and community involvement.”
“80% of 4th graders from low-income families in the United States are not proficient readers and 26% of these students won’t graduate from high school,” said Read to a Child CEO, Paul Lamoureux. “In light of this societal crisis, I am deeply thankful to Malcolm Mitchell, Read with Malcolm and the Patriots Foundation for raising awareness about the importance of improving literacy skills. Malcolm is also such a great role model for kids and clearly shows how reading and mentoring can spark truly magical accomplishments far beyond the football field.”
“We are so grateful to Malcolm Mitchell, Read to a Child and the New England Patriots for investing in our children and furthering our work as a district,” said Framingham Superintendent Robert Tremblay. “I look forward to seeing our students’ reading skills and self-confidence continue to improve as they connect with and gain inspiration from mentors and from literature.”
About Read to a Child:
Read to a Child (www.readtoachild.org) is a national nonprofit literacy and mentoring organization that inspires caring adults to read aloud to at-risk children to create better opportunities for their future. Research shows that reading aloud to children is the single most important activity for building the knowledge required for eventual success in reading and, thus, likelihood for success in school and life. Read to a Child currently partners with more than 125 corporations and institutions nationwide that provide 1,700 volunteers who read aloud to more than 1,300 under-served elementary school students in greater Boston, Detroit, Hartford, Los Angeles and Miami.
About Malcolm Mitchell, Read with Malcolm and Share the Magic Foundation
Read with Malcolm (www.readwithmalcolm.com) is a youth literacy initiative founded in 2015 by former University of Georgia wide-receiver and current New England Patriots wide receiver, Malcolm Mitchell. The mission of Read with Malcolm is to transform the lives of young students through literacy. The organization’s goals are to introduce book ownership to students in households where reading is not a priority and to improve literacy in schools with below grade-level reading skills. In 2016, Read with Malcolm increased its impact by launching Share the Magic Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The mission of Share the Magic Foundation is to promote the long-term benefits of reading and book ownership among students in Title I schools and underserved communities.
About The New England Patriots Foundation
The New England Patriots Foundation (www.patriots.com/community) is the nonprofit organization established by Robert Kraft in 1994 to support charitable and philanthropic agencies throughout New England. This support comes in the form of direct grants and the donation of signed memorabilia to charitable causes, and from Patriots players who offer their direct support by appearing at charity functions throughout the year. The Foundation’s primary goal is to support programs that aid the youth and families of the New England region by assisting programs that foster cultural diversity, education, family and health. The Foundation has taken special interest in youth programs that encourage education, creativity and development of character.
Photos from today’s event can be accessed at http://www.eventphotographyboston.com/Private-Galleries/Read-to-a-Child-with-Malcolm-Mitchell/
For Read to a Child
Elizabeth Dugan, Communications and Event Coordinator, 781-489-5910,
lizzy.dugan@readtoachild.org
For Malcolm Mitchell and Read with Malcolm/Share the Magic Foundation
Anne Sapp, Executive Director, Read with Malcolm, 404-892-6668, anne@readwithmalcolm.com
For New England Patriots Foundation
Donna Spigarolo, Director of Community Relations, New England Patriots 508-384-9292 | 508-431-8038 donnas@kraftsportsgroup.com
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