For their program in the Forest Hill community, Mark and Carolanne Kappus started their own foundation and used their son's nickname: It is called the Sweet Pea Foundation.
"We would never have gotten involved with the program if we didn't have Jack," she said. "So we thought it was appropriate to name the foundation after him."
To participate, children up to 5 years old must be registered with the Sweet Pea Foundation by a parent who resides in Forest Hill. Then each month, the children will receive a book in the mail.
The first book every child receives is The Little Engine That Could, along with a letter from Dolly Parton.
Other book titles include A Mud Pie For Mother, A Place Called Kindergarten, and Take Care Good Knight. The books are purchased from the Penguin Group and are selected by a panel that includes a librarian, kindergarten teacher and a parents' group member. The children receive books based on their age.
The program is free to the parents. The Kappuses, through the foundation, will pay the $2.33 per month, which covers the cost of the book and postage. Currently there are 1,054 preschoolers in Forest Hill who are eligible for the program, and of those, about 738 are expected to participate.
"Participation in most communities flattens out at about 70 to 80 percent," Dotson said. "The 20 percent of the population, who does not participate, is usually the wealthy people who have plenty of books for their children. The program is typically started in areas where there are at-risk, lower income families."
Kappus planned several activities to raise money for the program. Events were held at Milburn Orchards Sept. 20-21 and Sept. 27-28; quarter auctions and gift-wrapping at Christmas are in the works, she said.
Word about the program is spreading, she said. She has been contacted by people in Aberdeen and Churchville, who want the program in their communities, she said.
"I would like to see the program offered all over the county," she said. "Reading is crucial to young children. It's an investment in your child."
Amber O'Brien, the owner of the Goddard School, which is holding the kickoff event, got involved in the program because reading is her passion, she said. Every Goddard School has a different theme, and O'Brien's is Joy in Reading, she said.
"I know from my years of being a reading specialist, and home school mom, that a child's vocabulary is the biggest indicator of a child's success in learning," said O'Brien, who has a master's degree in reading from Towson University.
The program also promotes lap time and helps to develop early reading skills, she said.
"Parents today are so busy," she said. "But when they receive the book in the mail, and their child asks them to read, most parents will be encouraged to do that."
And reading at an early age is vital to children learning skills that will help them read, she said.
"We read to the babies who come to us at 6 weeks old," she said. "Through this process, the child learns sounds, then words, and our goal is that by the time they are in preschool, they are reading to the teacher. Most children will learn to read, but once they learn, they never read. The whole goal is that they learn to love to read."
