A Float Is Born

Members of the Employee task force worked to put together a float for the Tulip Time Children’s parade. With no budget local employers and volunteers came on board with donations, materials and talent and with momentum just like that, a “float was born.” 

Plascore Diaper Drive

Plascore, a new member of the Employer task force, has begun including the Readiness Definition in their newsletter on the "New Babies" page of their employee newsletter. In addition to spreading the word about kindergarten readiness they also organized a Diaper Drive. They held 50/50 raffles and accepted Diaper donations with the money (and the diapers) headed for daycare centers to help all children get "ready for school" with the best possible support. You can see their flier here.

Padnos 

Padnos helped to develop a gift basket to present to Padnos employees with new babies. An adorable Teddy bear donning the Ready for School hoodie is part of the basket. Also included are books and other items to begin to prepare these new little ones for school.

Johnson Controls

The new Johnson Controls Lithium Ion Manufacturing Center applied for and received a Blue Sky grant to partner with Ready for School.  The Maplewood School on Central Avenue which houses the Holland Early Childhood Learning Center was chosen as the partner for Johnson Controls. The team kicked off their relationship with a landscape project. There are several projects on the horizon including classroom assistance, book donations, a coat drive, children's garden, storage room reorganization and playground clean up.