TD Contributes Thousands of New Books to Kids in Need through First Book

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Aug 14, 2013, 01:04 ET

Over $140,000 donated to provide more than 25,000 new books to children from low-income families

CHERRY HILL, N.J. and WASHINGTON, Aug. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Children in need across the country are receiving brand-new books of their own, thanks to the support of TD Bank and the TD Charitable Foundation, the charitable giving arm of the bank.

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20101214/DC17316LOGO-b)

TD provided funding for the books through First Book, a nonprofit social enterprise that provides new books and educational resources to children from low-income families.

Through the TD Charitable Foundation's support of First Book's Banking on Books program, 50 local schools and community programs received $1,000 donations to choose books from the First Book Marketplace, which provides thousands of titles at deep discounts to eligible programs.

"Books make a huge difference in the lives of kids," said Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book. "TD Bank and the TD Charitable Foundation are helping us put thousands of books into the hands of kids in need and creating new possibilities for kids, educators and communities."

In addition to the donations, First Book and TD Bank held reading parties at seven schools in Connecticut, Florida, Maine, New York, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. Each participating school received a $2,000 donation to obtain new books for school and classroom libraries. Local TD Bank volunteers also visited each school to read with children and hand out bags full of stickers, bookmarks and brand-new books to take home and keep.

"Access to books at a young age makes a tremendous impact on a child's reading skills and overall education," said Elizabeth K. Warn, President of the TD Charitable Foundation and Senior Vice President of Community Relations for TD Bank. "TD's continued partnership with First Book not only provides much needed books to children, it also gives our employees an opportunity to connect with their local communities and help those in need through volunteering."

A number of the parties featured authors and illustrators, including Brian Floca (Moonshot), Lee Harper (Woolbur), Susan Verde (The Museum) and Toni Buzzeo (One Cool Friend).

First Book grant recipients include:

Connecticut: Beardsley School*, Willowbrook School East Hartford Head Start
Delaware: Wilmington Institute Library
District of Columbia: HIPPY Perry Center
Florida: Banyan Elementary, Boys and Girls Club West Sanford Branch, Boys and Girls Clubs of Northeast Florida, East Coast Migrant Head Start Project, Liberty Park Elementary School*, Project APPLES Reading Literacy Program
Maine: Aroostook County Action Program, Riverton Elementary School*, York County Community Action WIC Program
Maryland: Meade Village Head Start Center
Massachusetts: Berkshire Children and Families, Community Action Inc Head Start and Early Head Start, Community Teamwork Inc. Head Start Program, Garfield Elementary School, Mil Milagros, United Way of Franklin County Inc.
New Hampshire: Keene Housing Authority, Strafford County Early Head Start
New Jersey: Acelero Learning Head Start, B.E.O.F. Community Action Partnership, Bridgescape Learning Center, CFS Head Start, HOPES CAP Inc, Nurse Family Partnership VNAHG of Central Jersey, University City High School
New York: Cottage Kids Read, Evergreen Charter School*, HELP USA HELP Suffolk, Project Hope Charities, Project R.A.R.E., PRONTO of Long Island Inc, P.S. 149 Sojourner Truth School*, RECAP, Inc./Western Orange County Head Start - Port Jervis, Saratoga County EOC Head Start Region 1, Trinity Alliance, Visiting Nurse Service of New York Early Head Start
North Carolina: Columbus Children's Center, Mountain Projects Inc Head Start
Pennsylvania: Family Service Association of Bucks County, Keystone Opportunity Center Inc, Mabel Morris Family Home Visit Program, Maple Shade Elementary School*, Upper Chichester Library, Wright Head Start
Rhode Island: Central Falls Junior Senior High School, South Providence Neighborhood Ministries, Women's Leadership Council of United Way of Rhode Island
South Carolina: GLEAMNS HUMAN RESOURCE COMMISSION INC., South Carolina Direct Service Camp Care Center, Socastee Elementary School*, Spartanburg Housing Authority
Vermont: School's Out Children's Center
Virginia: Northern Virginia Family Service

* denotes a Reading Party recipient

About First Book
First Book is a nonprofit social enterprise that has distributed more than 100 million books and educational resources to programs and schools serving children from low-income families throughout the United States and Canada. By making new, high-quality books available on an ongoing basis, First Book is transforming the lives of children in need and elevating the quality of education. For more information, please visit us online or follow our latest news on Facebook and Twitter.

About the TD Charitable Foundation
The TD Charitable Foundation is the charitable giving arm of TD Bank N.A., which operates as TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank^®, and is one of the 10 largest commercial banking organizations in the United States. The Foundation's mission is to serve the individuals, families and businesses in all the communities where TD Bank operates, having made $105.4 million in charitable donations since its inception in 2002. The Foundation's areas of focus are affordable housing, financial literacy and education, and the environment. More information on the TD Charitable Foundation, including an online grant application, is available at www.TDBank.com.

About TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank^®TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is one of the 10 largest banks in the U.S., providing nearly 8 million customers with a full range of retail, small business and commercial banking products and services at more than 1,300 convenient locations throughout the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Metro D.C., the Carolinas and Florida. In addition, TD Bank and its subsidiaries offer customized private banking and wealth management services through TD Wealth^®, and vehicle financing and dealer commercial services through TD Auto Finance. TD Bank is headquartered in Cherry Hill, N.J. To learn more, visit www.tdbank.com. Find TD Bank on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TDBank and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TDBank_US.

TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank, is a member of TD Bank Group and a subsidiary of The Toronto-Dominion Bank of Toronto, Canada, a top 10 financial services company in North America. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges under the ticker symbol "TD." To learn more, visit www.td.com.

CONTACT:
Brian Minter
[email protected]
202-639-0115

SOURCE First Book