Assemblyman Bill Magnarelli (D-Syracuse) recently awarded St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center a $5,000 grant. The funds will be applied toward the hospital’s "Reach Out and Read" program and will be used to purchase approximately 1,200 books for pediatric patients at the Hospital’s Maternal Child Health Center.

"Programs such as "Reach Out and Read" enrich the lives of children and families in our community," said Magnarelli. "By supporting and promoting programs that encourage early childhood literacy and parental participation, we are paving a successful path for our future generations."

More than 3,800 children visit the Maternal Child Health Center annually, including 2,220 under the age of five. St. Joseph’s pediatricians are trained in the theories of early literacy development and specific strategies to promote literacy in children. During well-child visits they use this knowledge to give parents "anticipatory guidance" about the importance of reading aloud. They also give patients a new book to take home at every check-up from six months to five years, which are carefully chosen based on developmental and cultural appropriateness.

According to pediatricians who instituted the "Reach Out and Read" program in 1989, reading to children is the single most important thing parents can do to increase a child’s literacy success. Literacy skills help children succeed in school and lower the risk of school truancy and drop-out, substance abuse and teen pregnancy. St. Joseph’s has participated in the "Reach Out and Read" program since 2002.

"We appreciate Assemblyman Magnarelli’s long-standing support of St. Joseph’s programs," said Theodore M. Pasinski, President of St. Joseph’s. "This latest funding will help us continue to expose children to reading and cultivate early childhood literacy in our community."

St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center (www.sjhsyr.org) is a non-profit, 431-bed hospital and health care network providing services to patients from Onondaga and 15 surrounding counties. Through prevention programs and the latest diagnostic treatment procedures, St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center works with patients to achieve optimum long-term health. Winner of the National Research Corp. Consumer Choice Award for the past five consecutive years, St. Joseph’s also is designated a Magnet hospital for Nursing Excellence by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the highest honor bestowed on a hospital for nursing care.