A collaboration is taking place bringing the wonderful world of Kevin Kammeraad's puppets and a meaningful movement, Men of Color Read, to encourage more men of color to read and teach.
In January of 2020, the Men of Color Read initiative was launched in Kent County. Over 25 men met at the Martin Luther King Leadership Academy to read to small groups of children.
Jon Covington founded Men of Color Read (MOCR) in Los Angeles back in 2010. The program came to Muskegon in 2015, and now found a home in Grand Rapids. Men of Color Read is a literacy initiative comprised of men in the community determined to help eradicate functional illiteracy and improve youth reading skills. The men visit urban schools once a month to read to and connect with students.
However, with COVID-19, the program has had to change how they read to kids due to students learning remotely. So starting in January 2021, Men of Color Read will be joining Wimee's Words, an online children's show, to read books and get children excited about reading.
Every Monday, a guest from Men of Color Read will join Wimee for an hour to read a book, have conversations, and have interactive fun with online viewers.
Wimee's Words broadcasts weekdays at 1 p.m. online and on KDL's Facebook page.
Learn more about Men of Color Read, Wimee's Words, and everything else happening at Kent District Library by visiting KDL.org.
To learn about how to get involved, reach out to wimee@kdl.org.
