If you are looking for a local non-profit to support, I highly recommend one that my family supports, ACCESS Shelter. ACCESS is dedicated to serving women and children experiencing homelessness in Akron in a supportive environment. They offer the immediate needs for the homeless moms and children but also go further with education programs, advocacy, and empowerment for their residents.
If you were one of the people in the Akron community that donated books to the shelter in 2020 and 2021, your donations are being put to good use! Youth at the shelter will be encouraged to select their favorite books to take with them when leaving ACCESS.
Jackie Hemsworth, executive director for ACCESS states, “We can’t wait to share the castle with the families in shelter. We know that children that are read to regularly have a much higher chance of later success in school. ACCESS wants to set the stage for those opportunities.”
This is an amazing resource for the families at ACCESS shelter!
Community members who wish to support ACCESS Shelter’s push for early literacy are encouraged to give a gift to the Royal Reading Castle program at ACCESS-Shelter.org/donate. ACCESS is a non-profit organization that my family trusts and donates to for years, it is a place that I see impacting our community and value their work.
The Royal Reading Castle was built with funds generously gifted by the Babcox Family Foundation and many other supporters of ACCESS. ACCESS participates in a coordinated entry process.
If you are experiencing homelessness and are in need of services, please call 2-1-1
