Tata companies in the US, including Corus, unite to distribute books to children in need
28 Feb 2008
Representatives of First Book and Tata Group in North America, including Corus International and Corus Special Strip, gathered at Eight O’Clock Coffee® in Landover, Maryland, yesterday, to kick off the distribution of 65,000 new books to children in need nationwide.
Second grade students from Dodge Park Elementary School were the first students to receive brand-new books as a result of the support of Tata Group North America, one of the world’s most trusted corporate brands, and its companies. Students participated in reading circles with Tata representatives to celebrate First Book’s mission to provide new books to disadvantaged children. Together with the Tata representatives, The Maryland Department of Business & Economic Development, Prince George’s County Council members from District 5, Andrea Harrison, Deputy Chief of Staff & Policy Director and Sharon Howard, Education/Community Liaison distributed and read books to the Dodge Park Elementary students.
The celebration marked the efforts of six Tata Group companies who joined together during the 2007 holiday season to support First Book, an award-winning nonprofit organization with a single mission: to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. The combined support of Tata Sons, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Interactive Systems, Eight O’Clock Coffee, Tata Communications and Corus, will allow First Book to distribute 65,000 new books, valued at $260,000, to programs serving children in need throughout the United States.
In addition, Tata Interactive Systems provided in-kind support to First Book to help design a new online network that will enable First Book to communicate more effectively and efficiently with its more than 50,000 partners and donors, hundreds of volunteer-based local Advisory Boards, and thousands of community-based programs serving children in need.
"First Book is tremendously grateful for the generous support of The Tata Group and its companies, which will help to share the joy of reading and learning with thousands of children in need across the United States," said Kyle Zimmer, president of First Book. "Through the magic of books, First Book and The Tata Group are helping children to discover new worlds and realize brighter futures."
"The Tata Group has a long heritage of focusing on education in the communities in which it operates. We believe that doing good is doing good business – and this is a good example of how we use our resources constructively to invest in future generations," says David Good, Chief Representative, The Tata Group North America. "The Tata Group is proud that so many of our companies have pooled their resources and attention to make a difference in the education of so many children."
First Book is a nonprofit organization with a single mission: to give children from low-income families the opportunity to read and own their first new books. Through hundreds of local Advisory Boards, the First Book National Book Bank, and the First Book Marketplace, the organization provides an ongoing supply of new books to children participating in community-based mentoring, tutoring, and family literacy programs. First Book has provided more than 50 million new books to children in need in thousands of communities nationwide. For more information please visit www.FirstBook.org.
