Source: Trio Communications
What do kiwi kindergarten kids and one of the world’s oldest fraternal organisations have in common?
Books. And Duffy Books in Homes is the glue that has bound them together in a real New Zealand story.
Freemasons NZ is partnering with the Duffy charity to help con3nue its work geEng books into the hands of children who otherwise might not have access to them at home.
The partners’ target is 43 centres of Nga Tamariki Puawai o Tamaki/Auckland Kindergarten Association. Children at these centres will each get four free new books.
Linda Vagana, general manager of Books in Homes, says recent reports show the literacy sta3s3cs for New Zealand children are geEng worse. It is vital for children to learn the alphabet and start reading as early as possible if they were to get a good start to their education.
“As our founder Alan Duff says: children who can’t read become adults who can’t communicate, and that’s a serious disadvantage in a world that operates on the written word,” Vagana says.
“We are thankful that this programme, initiated by donations from the Freemasons of Auckland, and supported by the Freemasons Charity, has covered the cost of the books for these early learning centres. Normally the centres would have to fund 50% of the cost, so
It’s a real blessing that this generous dona3on means the en3re cost is covered. This partnership means we will reach more children at an earlier age.”
Graham Wrigley, the Grand Master of Freemasons NZ, says family and community values are at the heart of freemasonary.
“We share a concern for human values, moral standards and the rights of individuals, along with a focus on self-development,” Mr Wrigley says. “Enabling kindergarten children to read is helping the start of their life-long journey of learning.”
Since the official launch event in 1995, the programme has grown to encompass 524 schools, 263 early learning centres, more than 100,000 students, and more than 200 funding partners, supporters and donors in 2022.
By October 1999, more than one million books had been distributed. The thirteen millionth book milestone was reached in June 2019. That figure has now surpassed 14 million and the Duffy Books in Homes programme has inspired offshoot programmes in Australia and the USA.
