[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 16]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 21991]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




CONGRATULATING REACH OUT AND READ ON RECEIVING THE 2007 CONFUCIUS AWARD

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MICHAEL E. CAPUANO

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 31, 2007

  Mr. CAPUANO. Madam Speaker, I rise to congratulate Reach Out and 
Read, ROR, for receiving the 2007 Confucius Award for Literacy from the 
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, 
UNESCO. The theme for this year's prize was ``Literacy and Health,'' 
and Director-General of UNESCO, Koichiro Matsuura, made the award on 
the recommendation of an international jury. He honored ROR's success 
in reaching low-income children most at risk of school failure by 
offering literacy guidance to their families and promoting a reading 
culture.
  The nationally recognized program, started at Boston Medical Center 
in 1989, makes imaginative use of pediatric medicine to encourage early 
literacy. Parents trust their pediatricians, and Reach Out and Read has 
built upon this relationship. Through this program, parents receive a 
free book to read aloud to their child at every well-child check-up. 
This innovative program will distribute more than 4.8 million books to 
2.8 million U.S. children this year, and operates in all 50 States to 
reach about 25 percent of children who live at or near poverty in the 
United States.
  I have the deepest admiration for Reach Out and Read, and I 
congratulate them on this well-deserved honor. This award will help 
ensure that Reach Out and Read continues to grow and change the lives 
of American children for many years to come.

                          ____________________