LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE: I think I speak for all Americans when I say I was totally inspired by seeing President George Bush and Mrs. Bush at the Super Bowl, especially since they had both been so recently hospitalized. How are they doing now?

JULIE BAKER FINCK: President and Mrs. Bush are doing great, and continue to be grateful both for the exceptional care they received at Houston Methodist — and the many good wishes and prayers they received from their fellow Houstonians and friends around the world. Most of all, they are happy to be home and spending time with family and friends.

Tell us about the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation. How and when did it get started?

In 2013 Neil and Maria Bush formed the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation to carry forth Mrs. Bush’s legacy and focus deeply on the literacy cause in the Bush family’s hometown and the nation’s fourth largest and most diverse city. Founded on Mrs. Bush’s belief, “If you help a person to read, then their opportunities in life will be endless,” the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation is dedicated to improving the quality of life through the power of literacy and the breaking of the intergenerational cycle of low literacy in our city.

The foundation has some very ambitious goals including its vision, “Every member of the Houston community will be literate.” Is there a timeframe for that? How big a universe are you facing?

We do have a bold vision for the future. One specific goal that we have in moving towards making our reality is to ensure that by 2025 every child will read at or above level by the end of the third grade. We chose this particular goal because at the end of the third grade, children are expected to transition from learning to read to reading to learn. Research also evidences the importance of this milestone in a child’s education, because if children do not read on or above grade level by the end of the third grade, they have only a one in eight chance of ever catching up to academic standards during their schooling and are four times more likely to drop out of school.

In Houston, three out of five children do not read at or above grade level. For the city of our size this statistic translates into thousands of children year after year. If we can help more of our children enter kindergarten with necessary pre-literacy skills and be proficient readers by the end of the third grade, a much brighter future lies ahead for children, families and our community.

It appears you partner with a number of organizations that reach a cross-section of the Houston community. What are some of your key strategic initiatives?

The Foundation is focusing on two key strategies this year—increasing access to books in the home and expanding access to summer and out-of-school educational programs for low-income children. Earlier this year we launched MyHomeLibraryHouston.org, a website on which economically disadvantaged children can log on through their school and create a wish list of books they want to read and own. Then, donors can view them and sponsor a child’s wish list of six books with their tax-deductible gift of only thirty dollars. Also, our Ladies for Literacy Guild is supporting the build of a one-of-a-kind mobile library, called Curiosity Cruiser, that, in partnership with the Harris County Public Library, will provide educational programming and books to children in affordable housing communities during the summer, on weekends and after school.

Which members of the Bush family are directly involved with the foundation?

President and Mrs. Bush’s son Neil and his wife Maria founded the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation and serve on the board of directors. Neil and Maria have been integrally involved in both the formation and the ongoing growth and success of the foundation. They also chair our annual fundraiser, A Celebration of Reading, and host the event with Mrs. Bush and other members of the Bush family.

What was the most successful program you conducted in 2016?

The most successful programs that we supported in 2016 were Summer Reading Camps, now called Camp Adventure! in partnership with the Houston Area Urban League, the Houston Symphony and the Children’s Museum of Houston. Last year more than 400 low-income elementary school children participated in the three-day camps no cost to the family.  The camp is supported though funding provided by the foundation in partnership with Phillips 66. Aside from the camps being free for children to attend, more than 135 corporate volunteers from companies, such as Target, Phillips 66, PricewaterhouseCoopers, NRG, and Schlumberger help to the curriculum and provide small-group and one-on-one instruction. The activities integrate literacy with math, science and the arts. Not only do children engage in fun and enriching activities, but they also read and receive many books to take home with them and build their home library.

I see that you have a fundraiser coming up in April, featuring author Sue Grafton, among others. Can you tell us about that?

A Celebration of Reading is our signature fundraiser held every April in Houston. Mrs. Barbara Bush and Neil and Maria Bush, along with other members of the Bush family host an intimate evening which begins with a VIP reception followed by a program in the theater. During the program, New York Times best-selling authors take the stage to share their work by discussing the research behind the book, reading excerpts and/or sharing insights from the writing process. In addition, the program includes notable musical performances. The program is then followed by dinner throughout the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.

This year will mark the 23rd Annual A Celebration of Reading. The event will take place on Thursday, April 20 in downtown Houston. The slate of authors this year includes best sellers Sue Grafton, comedian Jim Gaffigan and international businessman Bill Browder. Each year since the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation was created, the event has raised more than $2 million and is one of the best charitable events in Houston. Tickets and tables for this year’s event are available on our website at BushHoustonLiteracy.org.

How many staff work at the foundation? How many volunteer there? Do you need more volunteers? How can our readers get involved and make a difference?

The foundation is staffed by five full-time employees. We also have a team of five AmeriCorps Volunteers in Service to America working with us full time. There are also two volunteer-based auxiliary groups of the foundation, the Ladies for Literacy Guild and the Young Professionals Group. There are nearly 400 members across the two organizations. In addition to the time and talent of these volunteers, we receive pro-bono services from Deloitte, Credera and Love Advertising in support of our strategic efforts. We encourage Houston-based readers to join one of the auxiliary groups or find volunteer opportunities at Connect4Literacy.org.

Connect4Literacy.org is a volunteer management website that we host on which more than 38 literacy organizations— libraries, schools and nonprofits— post their volunteer needs. Volunteering to mentor a struggling reader in a school or library, tutoring an adult at a community-based nonprofit, or sorting donated books are just a few ways people can get involved and make a difference.

Can you tell us about the My Home Library pilot program? What if other Texas publishers would like to get involved?

My Home Library is an initiative of the Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation aimed at providing more children of low-income families an opportunity to have the essential tools that are necessary for reading success — books. Through the use of a custom-designed, web-based tool, My Home Library enables children to create a wish list of books they want to read, and community members have the ability to sponsor a specific child’s home library of six brand new books by making a tax-deductible donation of as little as thirty dollars.

We are currently piloting the program with 560 low-income children in Houston and will expand the program this spring and over the course of the next few years. This initiative is critically important, because research shows that when children have access to books in their homes and choice in what books they read, they read more often and achieve at higher academic levels. Unfortunately, more than 80 percent of public school children in Houston are economically disadvantaged, and for many of them, books are a luxury that their families simply cannot afford. We feel My Home Library is a key strategy for improving literacy rates.

We have negotiated pricing with four children’s book publishers—Arté Publico Press, Bright Sky Press, Longtale Publishing, and Scholastic—to provide children a catalog of popular, culturally relevant and high-interest topic books from which to build their library wish lists. In addition, through the partnership we have established thus far with publishers, sponsoring a child’s home library is affordable for a donor and allows the donor to make a direct and meaningful impact on a specific child through their monetary gift. We do expect to involve additional children’s book publishers in My Home Library in the future. The best way to express interest is by sending an email to info@bushhoustonliteracy.org. Two key criteria for involvement are price and availability of books.

What’s the one thing that our readers can do in their communities to help more people have the ability to read?

Mrs. Bush believes, “If you help a person to read, then their opportunities in life will be endless.” With this in mind, readers can volunteer in a school, library or nonprofit in their community. Mentoring a child or adult and reading one-on-one on a regular basis can have a tremendous impact on reading achievement levels.

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