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Carroll County

 

Ferst Readers of Carroll County, Inc.

Girls behind booksFerst Readers of Carroll County began working in 2004 with a group of volunteers who believed that giving children the magic of reading would change our county literacy. In 2005, this group began registering children ages birth to five to receive free, age-appropriate books each month in the mail. The book comes addressed to the child and includes a Parent Newsletter to the parent or caregiver. 

The local organization works to register children and to raise the funds to pay for the books. It continues to be an all-volunteer organization, with more than 60 people involved, in all the work to keep up with registration and fundraising. New volunteers are always welcome. Today the organization is made up of an Executive Board with six teams working to handle Communication, Fundraising, Children’s Registration, Family Education, Statistical Data Analysis, and Volunteer Management. Some of these teams have more than 20 people working hard behind the scenes.

 

girl books couch

Ferst Readers has a team of people with early childhood literacy experience who select the books to be mailed to the children. The library of books now includes almost 200 titles provided by three  publishers: Harper Collins, Peachtree Publishing and Our Rainbow Press. You can find the book list on the Ferst Readers website at https://www.ferstreaders.org/about-us/read-to-me-library. This list is updated annually with new books added each year. It’s our goal that each child have his or her own library of books. This list will change for each child, because the books are age-appropriate.

In 2019, Ferst Readers of Carroll County has served almost 4500 children and mailed almost 3500 books each month. The cost of that is $36 per child per year. It’s a significant budget made possible by donations from individuals, several fundraising events, and grants from sponsors who believe in our mission. The biggest fundraiser is the Fashion Ferst Luncheon in October. All the money raised stays in Carroll County and is managed by the Community Foundation of West Georgia. 

 

mom baby quilt

Conversations Count is a new program for parents and caregivers of young children ages birth to three to help them understand early childhood development and the importance of reading to and talking with their children. This program teaches parents how to have interactions with their children. Every parent wants the best for their child and reading is a beginning of learning and development. Ferst Readers is training facilitators to teach this program in schools, churches, day care centers, and other organizations who are in touch with young families.

 



Want more information or want to help? Contact us by email at  

Meet Our Board Members:

Karen Hartley, Chair

Martha Thurman, Children’s Registration/Database Management Chair

Tony Childers, First Vice Chair

Karen Wild, Family Education Chair

Erin Brannon, Treasurer

Martha Ann Saunders, Member at Large

Deborah Wilson, Secretary

Margaret McCall, Member at Large

Taylor Key, Communications Chair

Lauren Holverson, Member at Large

Sheila Reed, Statistical Data Analysis Chair

Micki McDonald, Member at Large

Denise Taylor, Fundraising and Finance Chair

 

*DONOR SPOTLIGHT*  

Alice Huffard Richards Foundation  

Carroll County Schools

Ra-Lin and Associates, Inc.

Community Foundation of West Georgia

Carrollton City Schools Carrollton Civic Woman's Club
Steve Adams & Susan Stone

Times Georgian

Carrollton Golden K
Mary Alice and Bennett Brown Foundation Hightower Funeral Homes

Carrollton Kiwanis

Carroll EMC Foundation West Georgia Realty

Fairfield Kiwanis

Power of the Purse

Lovvorn Road Investments, LLC

Carrollton Rotary
Walmart Omni Call

Dawnbreakers Rotary

Tanner Health System West Georgia Electric

Carrollton Sertoma Club

SMI

Carroll County Sheriff's Department 

Carrollton Optimist

Carrollton Orthopaedic Clinic

J Smith Lanier & Co., Inc

Carrollton Presbyterian Church

Southwire

Shot Spot, LLC

Carrollton First Methodist Church

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Thank you for visiting Ferst Readers!

Ensuring that children develop early literacy skills is one of the most important things we can do - as parents, as teachers - and as a society.

Won't you help us make a difference?

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