Fort Collins group to help provide kids with 100-book home libraries

FORT COLLINS — Fort Collins-based Unite for Literacy LLC will supply books and reading programs to an effort aimed at sparking the love of literature in the minds of Fort Morgan youngsters.

Unite For Literacy is joining nonprofit groups Colorado Health Foundation and OneMorgan County, and major Fort Morgan area employers Cargill Inc. and Leprino Foods Co., to launch the Fort Morgan Growing Readers program. The program aims to provide all of Fort Morgan’s 4-year-olds — about 250 kids — with four books each week from January to July 2019, according to a Unite For Literacy news release. At the end of that period, the children will have personal home libraries with more than 100 books.

“Children who enter school with early literacy skills are more likely than their peers to experience later academic success, attain higher levels of education and secure better employment,” Susana Guardado, director of OneMorgan County, said in a prepared statement. “The result is a stronger community for everyone, so the goal of the Fort Morgan Growing Readers program is to make sure every Fort Morgan child enters kindergarten motivated and ready to learn.”

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Rocky Mountain Health Plans (RMHP), part of the UnitedHealthcare family, has pledged its commitment to uplift these communities through substantial investments in organizations addressing the distinct needs of our communities.

Unite For Literacy will also make available a free online library of 400 books narrated in a variety of languages.

“We celebrate and embrace the diversity of our beef plant’s 2,100 employees,” Tyler Luft, Cargill’s Fort Morgan plant general manager, said in a statement. “The cultures of more than 20 nations, including the United States, are represented by our team members, yet they all share the common desire to contribute to society. Part of that focus is on ensuring their children have educational opportunities like the Growing Readers program.”