C&S Wholesale Grocers and First Book Donate Books to Students

Students at Lehigh Valley Academy and Donegan Elementary in Bethlehem, Pa., received new books to take home and encourage them to read, thanks to a donation from C&S Wholesale Grocers and First Book, a nonprofit social enterprise that provides books, educational resources and other essentials to children in need.

Representatives from First Book and more than 50 associates from C&S visited the two schools to read to the children and hand out the books. All students from both schools received new books to take home. The reading celebrations, intended to foster a love of reading and fuel learning for local kids in need, are part of an ongoing partnership between C&S and First Book.

The reading celebrations were conducted as part of C&S and First Book's long-term "Food for the Body, Food for the Mind" initiative. C&S is also donating books to Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley in Nazareth, Pa., a member of the Feeding America network, for inclusion in their backpack program, which provides meals and other essential needs to children in need when school is not in session.

"Having access to books is one of the most significant indicators of a child's academic success," says Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book. "By ensuring they have books and other educational resources in their schools, programs and at home, we help give kids opportunities to continue reading and learning, which leads to improved outcomes later in life. We're proud to partner with C&S to reach the students in Bethlehem and other communities across the country.

C&S selected Bethlehem because it operates two facilities in the city.

"What we do at C&S extends far beyond logistics and delivering food to supermarkets and stores," says Gina Goff, senior director of community involvement for C&S, based in Keene, N.H. "Our 'Food for the Body, Food for the Mind' initiative with First Book reaches young and vulnerable children in a meaningful way. The positive ripple effects from it happen in the classroom, at home and beyond." 

Since 2006, C&S and First Book have donated nearly 300,000 new books to children from low-income families in two dozen cities and towns across the U.S.

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