[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 3]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 4098]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



     BERENSTEIN BEAR BOOK DONATION FOR THE CHILDREN OF SAN ANTONIO

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. CIRO D. RODRIGUEZ

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 20, 2001

  Mr. RODRIGUEZ. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to share with you the 
devotion to public service displayed by a group known as the 
Southwestern Bell Communications (SBC) Telephone Pioneers. The San 
Antonio Council #40 of this organization worked diligently to have 991 
popular Berenstein Bear books donated to their community's schools. 
With this donation they are taking concrete steps to promote reading of 
these fun books and others by elementary school children.
  The SBC Telephone Pioneers have the goal of impacting over 86,000 
families by donating a set of eleven books to ninety-one elementary 
schools in three different San Antonio school districts. The hope is 
that the teachers will read these stories about the popular Berenstein 
Bear family to help children better understand life's little and big 
issues while gaining an appreciation of reading books. Brother and 
sister bear share their stories of starting school, making friends, and 
dealing with their feelings while Mama and Papa give advice. They learn 
about honesty, sharing, and responsibility. These wonderful stories 
will not only help the children relate to different situations, but 
hopefully will also inspire the children to continue learning through 
reading.
  This tremendous donation by the SBC Telephone Pioneers is 
commendable. The over 40,000 students that will have access to these 
books are fortunate. The SBC Telephone Pioneers have set an example of 
how to improve our communities one child at a time. The donation of 
these books is a special tribute to the children of San Antonio and 
volunteers who cared enough to make a difference.

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