Celebrity Sighting!

That's award-winning actress Rondi Reed with SitStayRead dog Milo at Saturday's CARE Faire!

Sarah Scott reports that Ms. Reed was quite taken with the idea of kids reading to dogs and would like to get involved. Woo hoo!

Can you imagine Rondi Reed as a guest reader in a SitStayRead classroom? We can! Very exciting. Actors read the book Broadway Barks, by Bernadette Peters to a class of 2nd graders and talk about why reading is important in their profession, as well as to them personally. No telling how many kids might be inspired to become actors!

Goodbye to an Old Friend

That's author Beth Finke and her seeing-eye dog, Hanni, during a guest reader visit to Mr. Groves' class at Faraday last year.

It's hard to believe that it's been three years since I met Beth and the fabulous Hanni at a Barnes and Noble book signing. And even harder to believe that Hanni is now retired. We're so grateful to Beth for sharing Hanni with the SitStayRead students and we wish her lots of fun times and good belly rubs during her retirement.

You can read more about Hanni's latest life phase on Beth's blog post. And we'll be sure to keep you posted on the new canine partner in Beth's life. Wishing all the best to Hanni, Beth, and the new addition.

Reading Rewards Underway!

The Reading Rewards celebrations are underway and, as you can see, the kids are soooo thrilled!!!

We're still up to our eyeballs here in the Sit Stay Read office wrapping-up the school year but you can count on seeing more photos of the on-going RR celebration excitement soon.

New this year, were surprise special guests at the celebrations. Here's a photo of our Hendricks Academy top reader, Rayshawn (62 books read!) with George McCaskey, one of the owners of the Chicago Bears (and a great SSR supporter through Bears Care), and fire fighter Joe Pryst.

Many thanks to everyone who makes these celebrations possible--our generous donors, fabulous volunteers (two- and four-legged), and special guests. As teacher David Groves put it, “Sit Stay Read is so exciting for the kids and sends a powerful message that the community is excited about their accomplishments and is invested in their continued academic success!”

It's not too late to lend a hand--please donate today!

Our Football Friends--The Chicago Bears!

Was there a lot of hooting and hollering at your house last night for that great Bears game? We were so excited to see offensive lineman Josh Beekman again.

Josh was the favorite Sit Stay Read Guest Reader at Lowell School last year. That's Josh having a heart to heart with SSR dog, Oscar, a greyhound. (Click on the Chicago Bears label below to see more photos from Josh's classroom visit.)

Go Bears! Go Josh! Looking forward to a great season.

Award Winning Guest Reader

It was so exciting to learn that one of our students' favorite guest readers won a prestigious literary award recently. Read all about the award ceremony adventures of Beth Finke and her seeing eye dog, Hanni, on their blog and be sure to leave your congratulations in a comment--Beth loves to hear from fans and will even share your comments with Hanni.

And if you haven't read "Safe & Sound" yet, be sure to get a copy.

Dancing Dog

As you can see, the students in Ms. Garcia's class at Lowell School were enthralled yesterday when Sarah Cullen Fuller read "James the Dancing Dog".

Sarah is a recently (like last week!) retired dancer from Hubbard Street Dance. Although still plenty busy working with special events at Hubbard Street, Sarah graciously volunteered to be a Sit Stay Read Guest Reader. The kids loved hearing about how she learned to dance and all the exciting places she visited.

I just hope the students don't expect the SSR dogs to dance when they return to the classroom in May!

The Maestro's Visit

The excitement level was high at Hendricks Academy yesterday as the students eagerly anticipated a visit from the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra. Maestro Allen Tinkham read Jake the Philharmonic Dog to more than 100 students and brought along a string quartet to help him bring the story to life.

The kids especially enjoyed learning the ages of the student performers and how much time they spend practicing every day--an impressive 3-4 hours! Seen left to right on stage are: Emma Steele on violin, Marisa Sheppard on violin, Jaimie Sachay on viola, and Mira Luxion on cello.

The Hendricks students even had a chance to learn how to conduct an orchestra. The final photo shows them practicing their conducting skills along with the maestro.

As if that wasn't enough, all the students received CD's to take home so they could share the experience with their family and friends. Many thanks to the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra for a memorable day and a wonderful introduction to classical music.

Chicago Bears Visit Sit Stay Read

It was an exciting day for the kids and dog teams at Lowell School today when Chicago Bears rookie lineman, Joshua Beekman, visited the program.

That's Josh with Sit Stay Read dog, Lucy, as he gets ready to head into the school to read the book, "Corduroy" to the second graders. The kids loved hearing about how Josh's mom used to read him the book about a little stuffed bear who's missing a button on his overalls and is looking for a real home of his own.

Josh visited three classrooms and at the end of each visit the kids clamored for his autograph and didn't want to let him go.

We're grateful to Bears Care for their generosity in arranging for this very special visit and for their support, which makes Sit Stay Read programs possible. Josh is a wonderful role model and he did a great job of letting the students know the importance of reading and getting an education

We've Been Blogged!

We're so excited! Beth and Hanni (BTW, rhymes with "Bonnie") wrote about our meeting on their blog. Be sure to check it out to read all about their book tour adventures.

To learn more about the organization that trained Hanni, go to The Seeing Eye. Their mission, as stated on their website, is "to enhance the independence, dignity, and self-confidence of blind people through the use of Seeing Eye dogs." After meeting Beth and Hanni, I have to say that they're doing a great job of achieving that mission.

Meeting a Dog Hero

That's Beth Finke and her Seeing Eye Dog, Hanni, at Barnes & Noble this afternoon. Beth is the author of a great new children's book, "Beth and Hanni, Safe and Sound". It's a wonderful story all about what it's like for Hanni to be a Seeing Eye dog. We're hoping that Beth and Hanni will be Guest Readers at a Sit Stay Read school and share their story with the kids.

After reading the book and hearing Beth speak, I'm convinced these very special Seeing Eye Dogs are true heroes. Check-out Beth's website and see what you think.

Although Shandy couldn't go with me today I'm sure she and Hanni would get along well. Who knows, the two working girls might have lots to talk about.

Visiting Woodstock

Took a drive to Woodstock, IL yesterday for a book party. Craig Pierce, an admirer of Shandy and a favorite Guest Reader for our school programs, was launching his new book at the Woodstock Opera House.

It was a great time and the new book by Craig and illustrator, Tony Santiago, is lots of fun. It's called "Sit. Stay. Work. Play. All Dogs Have Their Day". Here's a link to their new Blue Collar Pups website.

I highly recommend a visit to see the lovely town of Woodstock. It's where they filmed the movie, Groundhog Day and they have the Dick Tracy Museum (see photo).

Coincidentally, Rick Kogan wrote about the town in today's Chicago Tribune. He does a much better job of singing the virtues of Woodstock so check-out his Sidewalks column in the magazine section or read it online. Then go see it for yourself. In a couple of weeks the trees will be changing color, an added incentive to take a drive in the country.