Book and a Blanket Program
Warms The Winter for City Students

Once again, the Book and a Blanket Program will be offering a cozy fleece blanket and a pleasure reading book to our youngest city students with the help of the volunteers and supporters of the program. The goal this year is 3,800 sets of a book and a blanket to be given to students at eight city schools.

On delivery days, you can see the results of the campaign. Volunteers from city and suburbs -- some adults, some high school students -- reading a new book to a small child, many wrapped in a soft fleece blanket. Some children will fit the blanket over their shoulders, and others will put their heads down on the fleece while they listen to their very own book being read aloud.

In 2008-2009, sets were given to students at Schools 2, 6, 8, 9, 22, 25, 33, 45 and Eugenio de Hostos in December, just before the holidays, and in the wintry months of January and February.

Rochester Education Foundation administers the program. The Book and a Blanket program was created five years ago by Buddies, Bridges and Brains, a terrific organization that supports a partnership between the town of Victor and School 22 in Rochester.

Thanks to The Marie and Joseph C. Wilson Foundation, Time Warner, BJ's Charitable Foundation, Target, Rep. Susan John, Nixon Peabody LLP, Bucks 4 Books and the M & T Bank Foundation for their support of the program this 2009-2010 school year.

Get Involved

If you are interested in getting involved for the 2009-2010 drive, please contact Karen Guidarelli at karen@rochestereducation.org. Volunteers to distribute books are needed. We will also happily accept contributions of new books, books purchased on our website, and funds to buy books for the project. Please specify "Book and a Blanket" when you donate. We also welcome donations of fleece.

To donate in support of Book and a Blanket:

• Donate a book of your choice on the Give Back, Give Books website
• Donate fleece material (contact us via e-mail, at bookandblanket@buddiesbridgesbrains.org)
• Donate ribbon (contact us via e-mail, at bookandblanket@buddiesbridgesbrains.org)

Learn More

For more information about the Book and Blankets program, please call us at 271‑5790 or contact us via e-mail at info@rochestereducation.org.

REF and Buddies, Bridges and Brains are also working together to support the KidBridge partnership. Click here to learn more.