PENDLETON, Ore. — Once upon a time, there was a program that helped kids get ready to read. It was a very good program, and one day, it received a nice grant that helped the kids. They all read happily ever after.

Enhanced outreach literacy services will be expanded in both Umatilla and Wallowa counties thanks in part to support from the Pacific Power Foundation. The foundation donated $1,500 to the Umatilla County Special Library District’s Take Off and Wallowa County’s Training Wheels programs.

"We are proud to help expand and enhance outreach literacy services for children from birth to the age of eight," said Bill Clemens, regional community manager for Pacific Power. "This kind of investment in the children of a community impacts their future school success and long-term economic productivity as adults."

The Take Off and Training Wheels programs use the materials and guidelines of the National Public Library Association’s Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library®. This program emphasizes the connection between children and the adults in their lives – parents, caregivers and other relatives – in developing children who are primed for reading.

"A number of strategies are employed to track results," said Ken Reading, Umatilla County Special Library District’s administrator. "These strategies include program usage, reflective surveys and observation measurements toward school readiness, all of which will be based on Every Child Ready to Read @ Your Library guidelines."

Last year, the Take Off and Training Wheels programs combined to reach 1,336 children and their families, visiting day care operations, public libraries, preschools, public schools and community agencies. Programs provided 1,536 children’s programs to more than 90 sites; gave away 4,602 books; provided 2,500 ready-to-learn activities including read-aloud events; distributed 4,572 parent newsletters; and loaned 555 children’s literacy boxes.

Umatilla County Special Library District will serve as fiscal agent for the grant. Both programs are part of the Eastern Oregon Early Literacy and Learning League. The league is a small group of rural, eastern Oregon county literacy programs with a mission to expand and develop early literacy through collaborative programming efforts.

About the Pacific Power Foundation

The Pacific Power Foundation is part of the PacifiCorp Foundation, one of the largest utility-endowed foundations in the United States. The foundation was created in 1988 by PacifiCorp, an electric utility serving 1.7 million customers in six Western states as Pacific Power in Oregon, Washington and California, and Rocky Mountain Power in Utah, Wyoming and Idaho. The foundation's mission, through charitable investments, is to support growth and vitality and improve the general welfare and quality of life in communities served by Pacific Power and Rocky Mountain Power.