FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. – Reading is a super power, and it’s only fitting that the first young reader to receive a book from Flagler County’s very first Bookworm vending machine at Rymfire Elementary on Friday courtesy of the Erik Jones Foundation should be a young Jedi.
Jedi Vanway, that is.
Placing his gold token in the vending machine lit up like a Dave & Buster’s video game in the school’s cafeteria, the machine’s robotic voice announced, “one book, coming right up” drawing awe from the crowd as they stood watching in anticipation while the bookworm dispensed a book for the eager youngster.
A rally of cheers went up as NASCAR driver Erik Jones stood next to Jedi, watching the book drop.
A Leg Up with Literacy
A lifelong reader, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club driver Erik Jones recalled a book about The Wright Brothers as one of his earliest favorites. His love of reading has carried into adulthood and Jones looked for a way to connect reading to the sport’s fanbase.
Jones said it started in COVID, when they did some readings online virtually and they really caught on with the kids and kid’s books.
“When we kind of got back into live, normal appearances we learned about these book vending machines through my foundation early on. Children’s literacy was high on our list, so we found pretty quick the kids were really excited about the vending machines when we donated them, and it really got them really excited about wanting to earn these books, so we started to push to donate more and more,” he recalled.
Partnering with AdventHealth on this delivery, Jones said they had been able to place these free reading opportunities across the nation.
“I’ve done a few all over. We’ve done some in Volusia with Advent, I’ve done some on my own with my foundation in Michigan. We done them kind of all over, so it’s been fun,” said Jones.
“As I started to get more into literacy and get more into it, I didn’t realize I guess how low the literacy rate in our country was, not just for kids but also for adults, and that starts in childhood, so it’s just kind of a free token to excel. If you’re a strong reader and proficient early it really gives you a jump start on your education, and really life.”
AdventHealth looks at the opportunity to support literacy not only as a way to help the community but serves as an investment in tomorrow’s future workforce according to Yuri Pashchuk, Associate Chief Nursing Officer for AdventHealth Palm Coast Parkway.
“As a dad, I have two little ones myself, and this is a personal event for me as well,” said Pashchuck.
“I’m so proud of AdventHealth partnering, going outside of our forte which is health care to partner with drivers like Erik Jones and be able to extend resources into the community. Part of this partnership allows us to build not only relationships but build pathways and open up doors for students who may have never considered career options in healthcare. This helps us bridge that gap, and literacy is the key to everything,” he said.
The Foundation of It All
Reading literacy is a fundamental pillar of the Flagler County Education Foundation and Flagler Schools’ mission. Rymfire Elementary School Principal Travis Lee said his school has taken the approach to challenge parents to read nightly with their children.
“It is exciting to be chosen. We have a focus on literacy and we’ve had a great amount of growth over the last three years in our literacy scores and encouraging our students to read nightly. We have family commitments tied to reading nightly for 30 minutes. It’s really helped us. This will definitely coincide with the opportunity for students to have free books,” said Lee.
He hopes the opportunity to meet a professional athlete will cement the moment for the students and inspire them to read more.
“I think about myself as an elementary student and I never met a professional sports talent, so to have somebody come to school and share their love for reading, I think it will make a huge impression on our students and hopefully ignite that fire for reading,” he said.
Rymfire’s lead media specialist Rebecca Tomes and literacy coach Caryn Taylor were thrilled by the addition of the bookwork vending machine to the campus.
“The kids are already excited about it. We’ve been talking about it already, we’ve been talking about how they can earn tokens and get a book,” said Tomes.
“We look for all opportunities to motivate our kids to read,” said Taylor, who shared that for some kids, this will be their very first new book.
Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore is excited to see the expansion of the AdventHealth partnership with Flagler Schools.
“It is so critical. There is so much research and data that supports how literacy impacts success in life. We just appreciate Advent, the partnership. I know this is the first vending machine but you know they’ve been a longtime partner here in Flagler Schools and we appreciate all that they do for us,” said Moore.
