[dropcap]S[/dropcap]cience Hall second grader Luna Ventura has been reading all year long, and her hard work paid off this month, as she won a bike in the Unforgettable Families and Friends drawing at the school.
Unforgettable Families and Friends is a non-profit organization working with Science Hall to encourage reading among the students. Ventura received the bike and related safety equipment after reading 15 books and writing book reports on each. Her name was drawn from among all the other second-graders at Science Hall participating in the program.
UFF introduced its reading program, “Bikes 4 Books,” to Science Hall Elementary School in September 2016. UFF provided each student with a new book to keep; other books came from home and the school or public library. After each book is read, the students are required to write a short book report for an entry to win a new bike, helmet, knee pads and a bike lock. As part of the Bike 4 Books program, local community leaders and members read to the students in the classroom.
Cynthia Bentley, who founded the organization, said, “I saw a need to ensure that students not only learn to read at an early age, but develop a love for books and reading, which is a key element in success in life.”
The bike and safety equipment was donated by Dean and Shari Miller, owner of Rancho Deluxe, a gift and collectibles store in Wimberley. A grant from Walmart in Buda supplied 100 bags filled with vegetables and fruits, enough for each second-grade student.
For the past four years UFF has been giving back to the Hays County community. UFF has partnered with Blue Santa (Kyle Police Department), Kyle Chain Reaction Food Pantry, Brown Santa and Sunshine Kids (Hays County), Hays Caldwell Women Center, and Science Hall Elementary School.
From left to right are Amanda Mejia (Children’s Dentistry of Kyle), Noelly Chaparro (United Heritage Credit Union), Cyndy Slovak-Barton (Hays Free Press), Ann Snyder (Walmart, Buda, TX), Michael Torres (Constable Pct 2, Hays County), Sandra Bryant (Hays CISD Trustee), Travis Mitchell (Council Member Dist. 1, Kyle), Araseli Amaya (Hays County Pct. 2) and Luna Ventura (Second Grade student Science Hall Elementary School, winner of the new bike).
