March 17, 2023
CHP’s summer reading program is coming back with in-person book fairs for kids at selected CHP apartment communities in Virginia. The program offers free books, snacks, and art activities to children and youth, as well as the opportunity to read and listen to stories. 2023 is going to be extra special, as it marks five years of CHP Reads!
Community Housing Partners (CHP), a nonprofit organization that provides affordable and sustainable housing throughout the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic, first launched the CHP Reads! Summer Reading Program in 2019 to help young residents at its apartment communities offset the loss of academic learning over the summer months. Reading while school is out builds language development, cultural awareness, and inspires curiosity and imagination.
To celebrate the CHP Reads! initiative’s fifth birthday, CHP is offering the program to grandparents living in some of CHP’s senior communities. For children, sharing reading with a grandparent develops key life skills and social and communication abilities.
The reading program has been steadily growing and evolving since its inception in 2019. Over the life of the program, CHP staff and volunteers have given out 14,000 books, installed eight new Little Free Libraries, and served over 1,700 youth.
To make this year the best one yet, CHP is gathering donations to purchase book packs, install more Little Free Libraries, and stock book fair activities and distribution tables. Since 2019, the program has passed out books to youth with the help of 361 CHP employees and volunteers, as well as online donors. Visit the Bucks for Books fundraising page for more information about making a contribution.
The return of the CHP Reads! Summer Reading Program will coincide with National NeighborWorks Week (June 3-10), a week-long celebration where NeighborWorks organizations spotlight their collective impact and show how they strengthen communities. CHP has been a chartered member of NeighborWorks America since 2003.
Participating CHP properties include:
Ansell Gardens, Portsmouth, VA; Belleville Meadows, Suffolk, VA; Cedar Crest, Blacksburg, VA; Checed Warwick, Newport News, VA; Cross Creek, Portsmouth, VA; Dolly Ann, Covington, VA; Friendship Village, Virginia Beach, VA; Greenstone on 5th, Charlottesville, VA; Heather Glen, Radford, VA; Henley Place, Christiansburg, VA; Holly Court, Kilmarnock, VA; Huckleberry Court, Christiansburg, VA; J. Van Story Branch Apartments, Baltimore, MD; Kippax Place, Hopewell, VA; Kingsridge, Richmond , VA; Lafayette Elderly and Lafayette Family, Williamsburg, VA; Laurel Woods, Pulaski, VA; Linden Green, Christiansburg, VA; Linden Grove, Christiansburg, VA; Maplewood, Martinsville, VA; Meadowview, Pulaski, VA; Northway, Galax, VA; Old Orchard, Pearisburg, VA; Overlook Terrace, Fredericksburg, VA; Parkview Gardens, Farmville, VA; Primrose Place, Baltimore, MD; Rivermeade, Yorktown, VA; The Summit, Hopewell, VA; The Woods at Yorktown, Yorktown, VA; Townsquare at Dumfries, Dumfries, VA; Wellesley Commons, Newport News, VA; Yorktown Square, Yorktown, VA.