Hundreds of books are being placed into the hands of students at Fort Worth ISD’s Bruce Shulkey Elementary School, thanks to Whataburger and nonprofit social enterprise First Book.

The two organizations hosted a western-themed Reading Roundup celebration in which Whataburger employees delivered copies of the 2019-2020 Texas Bluebonnet Award winning book “El Chupacabras” by Adam Rubin and read with third graders in small groups, Wednesday, September 4. The third graders each took home a personal copy of “El Chupacabras.”

Additionally, the school received a gift certificate good for purchasing additional books from the First Book Marketplace that will support Shulkey’s Reading is Fundamental program which ensures all students receive free books for their home libraries. Total, the school is receiving $4,500 worth of new books and resources as a grand prize recipient of First Book’s Book Wish grant.

“The Whataburger Book Wish Reading Roundup was a wonderful experience for our students and teachers. Our students truly enjoyed reading with the volunteers, and they were very excited to receive copies of their own for their home libraries,” said Lisa Wagoner, the librarian at Shulkey Elementary. “In addition, our whole student body will benefit from the added donation of funds towards the purchase of more books from First Book. Thanks so much to Whataburger and First Book for donating their time and resources to raising readers in our community.”

Ms. Wagoner applied for the Book Wish grant last October, and her campus is one of two grand prize winners in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The grant is an initiative between Whataburger and First Book in which Whataburger is giving 70 $1,000 First Book Marketplace grants to D-FW educators to support their program’s book needs.

“There’s no better way to instill the love of reading than putting a great book in a child’s hands,” said Vanessa Tritten, Shulkey Elementary principal. “Thank you, Ms. Wagoner for applying for this amazing grant and we are so appreciative to Whataburger and First Book for their giving spirit to our community.”

Ms. Wagoner said the Reading Roundup celebration was focused on reinforcing literacy, the importance of reading aloud, discussion and book ownership. She said she’s hopeful this motivates students to read more and do their best academically.

“They will remember it for years to come,” Ms. Wagoner said.

Founded in 1992, First Book is a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit social enterprise dedicated to creating equal access to quality education. Over its 27-year history, First Book has distributed more than 185 million books and educational resources to children in need.

Whataburger, a Texas staple, is a made-to-order burger establishment founded in Corpus Christi in 1950. For over 60 years, it’ supported multiple causes, including children’s education, with donations, sponsorships and volunteer work.