Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County

Great Charity Challenge
2023-02-04 18:30 - 21:00 UTC
Great Charity Challenge
sponsored by Fidelity Investments®
– $17.7 million to 294 Palm Beach County Charities –
The Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County is thrilled to have been selected for the Great Charity Challenge. We invite you to save the date for the 14th annual Great Charity Challenge sponsored by Fidelity Investments® (GCC), to be held on Saturday, February 4, 2023, at Wellington International (formerly known as the Palm Beach International Equestrian Center).
This year’s theme is “CANDY WORLD!” Join us as Wellington International transforms into a world full of your favorite treats, bringing everyone together to build a path to a sweeter future for our Palm Beach County neighbors in need.
Click Here to visit our charity page on the Great Charity Challenge website.

Celebrate Jeanne
2022-11-15
Help Us Celebrate Jeanne’s Silver Anniversary!

As we prepare to celebrate Jeanne Siccone’s 25 years of service with the Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County in December, we would love to hear from you with your memories, photos and how she has touched your life through the years. Please fill out the form below and consider honoring her service with a donation to the Coalition before the end of the year.

Read for the Record 2022
2022-10-27 08:00 - 17:00 | Bryant Park, Lake Worth Beach, Lake Avenue and Golfview on the Intracoastal Waterway, Lake Worth Beach, FL, 33449, United States
The Literacy Coalition is coordinating Read for the Record in Palm Beach County for the 17th year on October 27, 2022
Read for the Record brings together millions of people each year in classrooms, libraries, community centers and homes across the US. This annual campaign was launched 17 years ago to highlight the importance of building early literacy and language skills for EVERY child so that all children have the opportunity to enter kindergarten prepared to succeed.
The Literacy Coalition and our local partner PNC Bank, have joined Jumpstart’s national Read for the Record campaign again to coordinate locally for thousands of adults to read the chosen book to children across the county on a single day. The Literacy Coalition is working locally with municipal leaders, businesses and individual volunteers to make a huge impact. Last year the Coalition distributed hundreds of books to 554 childcare centers and distributed over 600 books to Municipal Leaders and guest readers to read and share with students and children at schools and child care centers through Palm Becah County. Hundreds of volunteers read to 29,127 children at 212 sites.
This year’s book section is Nigel and the Moon by Antwan Eady and illustrated by Gracey Zhang. A young boy who dreams big, but is too scared to share his dreams with the world. Instead, every night he tells his dream of becoming an astronaut, dancer, and superhero to the moon. As his class moves through career week, Nigel’s community helps him build up confidence in who he is. This book encourages children to celebrate where they come from, who they are, and who they want to be.

Read Together Palm Beach County
2022-04-01
Join us for our 13th Read Together Palm Beach County “one-book, one-community” campaign is an initiative in which adults throughout the County read the same book at the same time to encourage adults to read together and attend book discussions hosted by community partners, libraries and book clubs to discuss key themes in the book. The Read Together finale will be held on April 1, 2022, during the 31st Annual Love of Literacy Luncheon where the author Elizabeth Berg will be the featured speaker. Ms. Berg’s novels include this year’s Read Together book, The Story of Arthur Truluv, Open House (an “Oprah’s Book Club” selection), Talk Before Sleep, and The Year of Pleasures. Her work has been published in 30 countries, and three of her novels have been turned into TV movies.
The Story of Arthur Truluv is about an unlikely friendship between a teenage girl and an elderly widower. Of the book, Richard Russo said, “I don’t know if I’ve ever read a more affecting book about the natural affinity between the young and the elderly than Elizabeth Berg’s The Story of Arthur Truluv”.
“A good story can bring us all together,” said Kristin Calder, Literacy Coalition CEO. “We are thrilled to partner with libraries and community partners to coordinate the Read Together Palm Beach County Campaign in its 20th year. This year’s Read Together book is uplifting and entertaining, showing how the power of love, and shared connectivity can be fulfilling in helping overcome loneliness and loss. It also confirms that we can all learn from one another regardless of our age, backgrounds or experiences.”
This community reading campaign will entice adults who can read, but often don’t, to get involved in the habit of reading again, it will also promote community dialogue and engagement as citizens gather together to discuss key themes.
Libraries, businesses, service clubs, neighborhoods and schools will hold discussion groups. You can, too! Check back later for the guide with listings of events related to the campaign. Events and book discussions are planned for Winter through early Spring.
This community reading initiative is not a fundraiser but helps support the Literacy Coalition’s mission to improve the quality of life in our community by promoting and achieving literacy.
Copies of the book are available at the Literacy Coalition for a $10 donation. The Palm Beach County libraries and municipal libraries will also have copies to check out.

Please consider hosting an event, sponsoring the Campaign or partnering with us in some way in support of Read Together. Contact the Literacy Coalition with partnership ideas and to be added as a sponsor. Sponsorship’s for the campaign, ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 are available, see the link to the form below.
CLICK HERE to download the 2022 Read Together Event & Discussion Guide
CLICK HERE to download the 2022 Read Together poster
CLICK HERE for the event flyer
CLICK HERE for the sponsorship opportunities form

Thank you to our 2022 Partners and Sponsors:

For more information, email Communications@LiteracyPBC.org or call 561-767-3370.

Register your book club or readers group and receive news and updates about Read Together, discussion groups and your club will receive one free book of the current Read Together selection.
CLICK HERE to learn more and to join the Literacy Coalition Book Club.

Thank you to everyone that joined us virtually for the 2020 Read Together Finale!

Thousands of adults, community partners and sponsors joined the Literacy Coalition in the 12th Read Together Palm Beach County Campaign, an initiative in which adults throughout the county read the same book at the same time. Events were hosted throughout the fall to bring the community together to discuss key themes in the book. Our 2020 selected title was The Nickel Boys by New York Times bestselling author Colson Whitehead. The book was inspired by the revelations of a reform school in Florida that operated for 111 years and warped the lives of thousands of children, covered by Ben Montgomery’s series in the Tampa Bay Times about abuse at the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida. Book discussions were held throughout the county including at The Book Cellar, Serenity Teahouse & Cafe, Palm Beach County libraries and municipal libraries. The online finale on November 18 featured an interview with Mr. Montgomery and commentary by community leaders pictured in this section.
Copies of the book are available at the Literacy Coalition for a $10 donation.
CLICK HERE to read the interview by The Palm Beach Post reporter Adriana Delgado, who interviewed Colson Whitehead last year when the book was released.

The Grand Bee Literary Fun and Games
2020-10-29 18:30 - 21:00
THE 29th ANNUAL GRAND BEE
Join us virtually Thursday, October 29, for a fun night of literary-themed trivia and spelling competitions for the coveted first place trophy at The Grand Bee!
Gather a team of co-workers or friends for the party. You can assemble your team virtually or in-person and we’ll prepare refreshments and a swag bag for pick-up at a Park Avenue BBQ Grille location near you.
This year’s trivia theme is A Year of Mystery in this exciting virtual game show style format. The event marks the 29th year for the Bee, which started as the Great Grown-Up Spelling Bee.

To view the silent auction items open for bidding, click the button below.

CLICK HERE to download The Grand Bee flyer with additional details.

Alphabet Letter Sponsorship:
A — Alex Glazer
B — Bernadette O’Grady
C — Bataille Family
D — Duke Family
E — Ellie Taft and Scott Miller
F — Atherton Family
G — Gildan Family
H — Alma Horne
I — Available
J — Sonny and Sabine Dantus
K — Lynn Kalber and Scott Eyman
L — Loewenstein Family
M — Melissa and Matt Criscuolo
N — Available
O — Oaxaca-Guzman Family
P — Palm Beach State College
Q — Quality Tutors
R — Rocco Family
S — Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley
T — The Gray Family
U — Available
V — Vera Family
W — Ken Spillias
X — Available
Y — Available
Z — Tom Ztreit

2020 Grand Bee Teams:
The AkerBees (Akerman, LLP)
Bee Alert!
Keiser University
NCCI
Quality Tutors
The Bee’s Knees (FPL)
Tony’s Tornados (The Palm Beach Post)
Email: Communications@LiteracyPBC.org for more information.

Congratulations to the 2019 Grand Bee Champions, The Palm Beach Post! L to R: Front row: Nick Manzino, Carol Rose, Adriana Delgado and Howard Goodman of The Palm Beach Post, with Debra Ghostine, Scott Miller. Back row: Kimberly Lea, Chris Duke, Literacy Coalition CEO Kristin Calder and Bernadette O’Grady.

The Grand Bee Co-Chairmen and Committee: L to R: Telsula Morgan, Chris Duke, Kimberly Lea and Nicole Rocco. Not shown: Nancy Vera.

2019 Grand Bee

2018 Grand Bee Photos

2018 Grand Bee
31 Photos

2017 Grand Bee Photos

The 2017 Grand Bee winning team was Akerman, LLP

2016 Great Grown-Up Spelling Bee Photos

2016 Great Grown-Up Spelling Bee

2015 Great Grown-Up Spelling Bee Photos

Great Grown Up Spelling Bee 2015

Literacy Coalition Book Club
2020-07-10
Register Your Book Club!
Register your book club with the Literacy Coalition and receive the following:
Read Together Palm Beach County updates
One free copy of the Read Together book for the group leader
Book recommendations
Invitations to literary happenings and more!
If your company or organization would like help getting started with group reading, let us know. CLICK HERE to register your club, or email communications@literacypbc.org and put “book club” in the subject line.

Adult Literacy Tutor Training
2016-08-01
Would you like to help an adult improve their reading skills?
Become a trained volunteer tutor with the Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County!

With Literacy Coalition, your Reading and English skills can improve through our adult literacy tutor training in Palm Beach, FL. Our programs will help prepare you in taking the GED Exams at adult education programs county-wide.
This course is designed to prepare volunteers to work with adult literacy students. Upon completion of the course, tutors will be referred to community agencies and matched with individuals seeking assistance. Volunteers will tutor adults one-to-one. Tutoring sessions are usually held for two hours and will be once or twice a week. Volunteers will tutor them one-to-one, and the sessions will be held in public places, such as schools or libraries.
CLICK HERE to register as an adult literacy volunteer and receive notifications regarding upcoming trainings.
Current volunteer tutors, CLICK HERE for VIC.
Requirements: Volunteers must be at least 18 years old. For more information call Jeanne Heavilin at (561) 767-3366 or e-mail JHeavilin@LiteracyPBC.org.
The Literacy Coalition of Palm Beach County is an equal opportunity employer/program. If you have a disability that requires special services, call us at (561) 279-9103 to ensure the availability of appropriate accommodations.
