Reading and literacy is an essential life skill. One program at Mission Hospital lets newborns and families take books home from the hospital to get a head start on reading.
The NICU Reading Program, a collaboration between Family Support Network and Volunteer Engagement, helps make sure that each newborn in the NICU at Mission Hospital has a book at the bedside. That way, a book is there for family and friends to read when visiting the baby. Once it’s time for the family to go home with their newborn, the book goes home with them. This encourage the family to continue reading to with their baby, which has shown to increase literacy by starting early.
Mission Hospital’s Volunteer Engagement team maintains and grows the book collection through donations and funds from the Books Are Fun sales, which is one of Mission Hospital’s Volunteer Engagement’s regular fundraising sales that funds hospital and patient care projects. Team members, doctors, nurses, community members and even former NICU families donate books.
You can never have too many books! The team is in need of more books in order to ensure babies and new parents have books to take home. Donate a new children’s book to the NICU Reading Program: Drop off your book(s) in the Volunteer Engagement Office at Mission Hospital Memorial Campus.
To learn more or for questions about the program or donating books, call the Volunteer office at (828) 213-1057 or visit www.mission-health.org.