Three thousand books are given out yearly as part of the Reach Out and Read program. At a recent meeting Rotary gave a $4,000 donation to the program for 2018.

Dr. Sarah Scherger is the department chair of SE MCHS Pediatrics and she spoke to the group about the program success and her son Noah, a 5-year-old reader who attended the meeting with her.

The Reach Out and Read program is a national program that Mayo Clinic Health System Austin Foundation started at the Karl R. Potach Pediatric Clinic, where the providers give out books to children at their well child visits from infancy to age five.

It encourages families to read to their children during the early years and helps promote literacy during the time of most rapid brain development,