New Program Brings Books to 10,000 Children

FREE READ: Children celebrate their new free books as a part of the Brooke Jackman Foundation's new Book in Hand initiative.

NEW YORK—In honor of September 11 victim Brooke Jackman, over 10,000 disadvantaged children throughout New York will receive the gift of a new book.

On Aug. 28th, what would have been Brookes’s 30th birthday, the Brooke Jackman Foundation launched their new “Book in Hand” program at P.S. 250 in Brooklyn. Wrapped with care in colorful paper, each child received a free book. The program, which will continue through Sept. 11, will become an annual tradition for the foundation.

“The basic premise is that every child in every one of our programs gets a present for Brooke’s birthday,” said Brooke’s sister, Erin Jackman. “The present being a brand new book”

During the day-long program, children also enjoyed a book reading by author, Jill Santopolo, a lunch, and a slide show presentation about how the Brooke Jackman Foundation was formed.

Having just graduated from Columbia University at the age of 23, Brooke was working at Cantor Fitzgerald on the 104th floor of the North tower when the terrorist attack hit in 2001. According to Erin, Brooke had a passion for reading and, just prior to the fateful day, had announced to her family that she wanted to go back to school so that she could work with children.

Combining Brooke’s dreams to help children and her passion to read, her family started the Brooke Jackman Foundation in her memory shortly after her memorial service was held. “Since she was a little girl she loved to read and was never without her books,” said Booke’s sister, Erin. Since then we decided to combine her desire to help children and her love of reading and we started the foundation.”

Since its inception, the foundation has grown and flourished, reaching out to thousands of underprivileged children throughout New York. Among the numerous programs it now hosts are its intensive Family Literacy Workshops in Washington Heights and Brooklyn, as well as its “Brooke Packs” program which gives backpacks filled with books, audio books, Walkmans, and school supplies to children living in temporary housing. The foundation has also established two libraries with plans to open a third later this year.

Recalling one of the families reached through the Family Literacy Workshops, Erin mentioned that one mother and child had come to attend week after week. She later approached Erin to thank her, mentioning that after the program, both she and her daughter read every chance they get. “She handed me these flowers and said, ‘thank you for helping my daughter and me to blossom,’” said Erin.

Erin mentioned that, with their new “Book in Hand,” initiative, the foundation hopes to touch the lives of even more children. “I’d like to see my sister’s love of reading spread to all of the kids in all of our programs,” Erin said.