Grant Request Read to Grow Inc.
Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form
Organization Name: Read to Grow Inc.
Legal Name (if Different):
Also Known As:
Mailing Address: 53 School Ground Road, Unit 3
City: Branford
State: CT
Postal Code: 06405
Main Phone: 2034886800
Main Fax: 203-488-7735
Organization Website: www.readtogrow.org
Employer ID Number: 061572185
Organization Tax Status: 501 (c)(3)
Proposal Information
Today’s Date: 03/28/2023
Requested Amount: 5000
Project Title: Supporting early childhood literacy from birth through Books for Babies (BFB) program’s NICU Program
Project Description:
We are requesting support for BFB’s NICU Project, which gives literacy packets to parents of babies being treated at three NICUs in Hartford County. Parents receive two baby board books, a copy of our First Guide to Parents of Newborns, and an invitation to read to their babies while visiting their child in the NICU.
According to the CT Department of Public Health data, 839 babies born in 2020 were admitted to NICU units in Hartford County. The number is significant because research indicates that preterm babies, the majority of whom are admitted to NICU, are shown to have language development issues (Reidy et al, 2013). However, research also shows that reading to NICU babies positively influences language development (Neri et al, 2021). Parents can experience a sense of normalcy and bond with their babies when they read, talk, and sing to them while they are in the NICU. Reading exposes babies to the calming, soothing sound of their parent’s voices, in an environment that is clinical and dominated by the whir of machines.
Sharing books helps babies (including very sick babies) form important brain connections. Our NICU Project materials also invite parents to register for Follow-Up, which mails more literacy information and baby books to homes when babies are 3 months and 12 months old. In the fiscal year 2022, we distributed more than 600 books to families of 300 plus newborn babies who were admitted to Connecticut Children’s Hospitals NICUs in Hartford and Farmington. In January 2023, our NICU project expanded to families of babies admitted to the Hospital of Central Connecticut’s NICU.
The NICU project helps parents establish book-sharing routines with their babies, which we hope will continue at home once the babies are discharged.
Total Project Budget: $32,163.72
Other Funding
Sources For The Project (Committed & Potential): Fund for Great Hartford (funded); Wadsworth Family Foundation (pending); Ensworth Charitable Foundation (pending)
Project Duration: Ongoing
Geographical Area Served: Connecticut
Age Group To Be Served: Adults and babies
Contact Information
Contact Prefix (Mr,Mrs etc.): Ms.
Contact First Name: Shitu
Contact Last Name: Rajbhandari
Contact Title: Grants Writers
Contact Phone: 2034886800
Contact Email: srajbhandari@readtogrow.org