Reach Out and Read Minnesota is excited to invite you to our Spring Benefit Breakfast, happening on May 5th at the Wilder Foundation in St. Paul. Join us, alongside leaders in the fields of healthcare, early learning, and policy for an engaging event in support of our program and our state's youngest learners.
WHAT
It's Reach Out and Read Minnesota's premier event of the year: our Spring Benefit Breakfast! This event is a can't miss for anyone interested in the world of early childhood learning and health in Minnesota. We bring together a cross section of our state's leaders from diverse sectors, including healthcare, early childhood learning, government, libraries, children's book publishers and more, who all share one common belief: the simple act of sharing a story with a loved one can transform a child's life.
We'll be hearing from the Reach Out and Read Minnesota leadership team about our program's impact on families across the state, presenting our Gerald Gilchrist Medical Champion Award for an outstanding practitioner of Reach Out and Read in the clinic, as well as our Diane Loeffler Legislative Champion for a Minnesota policy maker who has been an outstanding advocate for Reach Out and Read and other early childhood initiatives in our state. We'll also be hearing from a special guest speaker, to be announced shortly. Previous speakers include award winning memoirist Kao Kalia Yang, children's book writer and illustrator Michael Hall, and Regents Professor and McKnight University Professor Megan Gunnar of the University of Minnesota.
We'll have a breakfast buffet, featuring pastries, granola, yogurt, fresh fruit, coffee, and tea for all attendees.
Our Spring Benefit is open to all who wish to attend.
WHERE
This year's benefit will take place at at the Wilder Auditorium located at the Wilder Foundation in St. Paul (451 Lexington Pkwy N). Parking is free in the Wilder ramp, and the center is adjacent to the Lexington light rail station.
We will also have a virtual live stream of the event.
WHEN
The benefit is taking place on Tuesday, May 5th from 7:30 to 9am. Check-in and our breakfast buffet begin at 7:30am, and our programming will begin at 8am. We encourage attendees to arrive early in order to check-in and get breakfast before the programming begins. Guests are welcome to stay after the event to network and/or purchase our Books Build Better Brains apparel items.
The livestream will begin at 8am Central Time.
REGISTRATION
We are asking all attendees to register ahead of the event, preferably by April 28th, one week before the event. We are anticipating a full house this year and cannot guarantee seats for guests who have not registered ahead of time.
The generosity of our community makes our program possible at our more than 300 clinic sites across the state. We ask that each attendee consider making a gift at a level that is meaningful to them in order to support our work. We have a general supporter level ticket ($100), a free "community ticket" level option, and options to host a full or half table at the event. All registrants may choose to add an additional amount to their ticket donation according to their ability to give.
Individuals who are attending as guests of a sponsor or table host may register under "reserved".
If you are interested in hosting a table or have any questions about registration and tickets, please reach out to Liam Mackin, our Communications and Development Manager, at liam@reachoutandreadmn.org.
