Hackensack, NJ – Greater Bergen Community Action, Inc. (GBCA), Bergen County’s federally-designated anti-poverty agency, which in recent years expanded to provide services in the cities of Paterson, Jersey City and Passaic, was awarded a grant of 5,096 children’s books by the Molina Foundation, a national nonprofit organization focused on reducing disparities in access to education and health. The award came as part of the foundation’s 2018 “Launch into Learning with Community Action” campaign.
From the generous donation, an array of materials, including storybooks, workbooks, flashcards, activity books, classroom-size/oversized storybooks, activity guide/flip charts, and a variety of other educational resources, were distributed to many children and their families as gifts during the 2018 holiday season, as well as during the agency’s “Read Across America” events, and also to GBCA English as a Second Language (ESL) students to promote literacy.
Additionally, participants in the GBCA Paterson Family Financial Empowerment Program, an initiative intended to provide convenient, client-driven satellite banking and financial literacy to Paterson families, were given a selection of books to bring home to their children currently enrolled in GBCA Paterson Head Start.
Nancy Griner, GBCA Head Start Program Director, says, “With the help of grants and donations like those received from the Molina Foundation, GBCA is able to provide its clients with fundamental tools for educational and life success that they may otherwise not have access to at home.”
The distribution of materials received by Greater Bergen Community Action is ongoing, and will continue to support the literacy needs of the low-income families it serves.
ABOUT GREATER BERGEN COMMUNITY ACTION
Greater Bergen Community Action is a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit Community Action Agency. Established in 1967, Greater Bergen is part of a nationwide network of poverty-fighting enterprises which were established as part of the nation’s effort to address the intractable and persistent problem of poverty in America. For more information about GBCA, go to www.greaterbergen.org.