I am honored to partner with Pro Football Hall of Famer, Jason Taylor, on the “Read to Succeed Initiative” benefiting the Jason Taylor Reading Room and other key Foundation initiatives and partnerships, including Parkland Cares. The initiative was originally launched by StevenDouglas Chairman and CEO, Steve Sadaka, who continues to assemble a dedicated team of committee members determined to serve as ambassadors for the after-school program, which is provided at no cost to under-served middle school students. Our committee is seeking generous community members willing to contribute $1,000 each, the cost for one child to participate in the program throughout an entire school year. Any money raised above what it costs to operate the Reading Room will again be allocated towards college scholarships, the Foundation’s bluapple Poetry Network and Parkland Cares.

      

The 2018 Read to Succeed campaign resulted in another extremely successful year, as the committee raised nearly $250,000 to benefit deserving children in the areas of literacy, empowerment and continued education. Since its launch in 2010, “Read to Succeed” has raised more than $1,650,000 for Taylor’s literacy based programs, including $200,000 towards college scholarships, student advocacy and mentorship. And thanks to the generosity of this campaign’s donor base, the program continues to! Currently, more than 75 students attend the center four days per week, receiving expert instruction from a full time educational director and case manager, as well as a team of certified teachers and teachers’ aids. A math component has also been integrated into the curriculum, as has a homework assistance platform.

Currently, more than 70 public schools, spanning from as far south as Homestead to as far north as Jacksonville, actively participate and connect through bluapple on a weekly basis. In fact, this April will mark the Foundation’s fifth year of producing the “Super Bowl” of poetry, Louder Than A Bomb Florida, a 32-day spoken word poetry festival that features a friendly, school-based, team poetry competition. To hear Jason Taylor and Omari Hardwick discuss LTABFLA, please click here.

Each donor who contributes $1,000 or more will be invited to an exclusive event hosted by Jason Taylor, Steve Sadaka, and friends at Smoke on the Water, Weston’s popular cigar bar and lounge where, in addition to an open bar, food and cigars, a photographer will take pictures of all donors with Jason and print them out on-site so that Jason can personalize them that evening. This event will take place in May.

I truly appreciate you taking the time to learn more about this cause that is so important to me, and hope that you will consider supporting these deserving youth.