Providence Commits to Kids to Kids: Community Outreach Efforts Celebrate Organization's 5th Birthday

May 27, 2006 - As Providence prepares for its grand opening to the public, the brand new master planned community announced plans for a two-day celebration of the 5th birthday of Kids to Kids. The organization will be a key beneficiary of the developments on going public outreach efforts.

The celebration, which is free and open to the public, will take place on Saturday, June 3 and Sunday, June 4 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Providence, located at I-215 and Hualapai. The event will coincide with the grand opening of the 1,200-acre master planned community's information center.

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The event programming includes two days of fun-filled events including appearances by noted authors, members of local sports teams and other hometown celebrities, family activities, food, music and more. Integrity Broadcasting and KVBC will broadcast from Providence to generate awareness for the Kids to Kids organization.

Focus Property Group, master planner of Providence, seeks to create outreach programs within each of their master plans that address a social cause within the community. Providence's outreach efforts will focus on literacy therefore an alliance was formed with Kids to Kids to help address the issue.

Kids to Kids is celebrating not only five years of giving the gift of reading in the form of books for the valley's area children, but also five years of helping literacy causes throughout Nevada.

"Ownership of books is a critical factor in every child's intellectual development," said Laurie Porter, president of Kids to Kids. "Children who own books will read them over and over again, memorizing the stories and learning to follow and identify with the words on each page."

Kids to Kids' mission of spreading the joy of reading throughout the community parallels Providence's theme of celebrating Americana through the literary legacy of the country's greatest writers.

"Kids to Kids is a remarkable organization. Its dedication to introducing children to the power of the written word is a real inspiration," said John Ritter, chairman and CEO of Focus Property Group. "In building a strong community at Providence, we want to help organizations like Kids to Kids while encouraging our residents to be active participants in reading and helping others to read."

A talented roster of performers and entertainers is being assembled to help those in attendance share in the joy of reading. Those involved range from authors to professional athletes.

Among those scheduled to appear are Joyce Moller, an author who wrote a book for a special needs child who lost a limb and learned to live with a prosthesis and Beti Kristof, an author who will share her book, "The First Football ABC Pretzel Book," that teaches children the alphabet while connecting them to the sport of football.

The joys of reading will be brought to life by storytellers including Screen Actor's Guild member, Barbara Biddel, and Zuki Landau, former director of the Henderson District Public Library. Local authors published by Stephens Press are also scheduled to attend the event.

Author and storyteller Audrey Smith will share her book, "Mischievous Bugs," with those in attendance.

Mike Miller will read from his series of books featuring Tomas the desert tortoise.

The reading continues with Genie Corcoran, The Storygenie.

Frank Fiorello will be on hand to bring his stories from the pumpkin patch to life.

There will be performers at the event such as Sign Design Theatre, who will bring the excitement of their team to Providence.

Local members of professional baseball and football teams will toss footballs and baseballs with children. UNLV cheerleaders and dance team members from the Las Vegas Gladiators will conduct a mini-dance/cheerleading camp.

Other appearances of note include the LVMPD Canine Unit, balloons artists, a face painter, a jumpy house and a rock wall. Representatives from Heaven Can Wait Sanctuary will be on-site with dogs used in their literacy efforts.

In addition to the two-day event's roster of entertaining and enlightening programming, Kids to Kids will be holding its "Pennies for Pages One Hour Read-a-Thon." The read-a-thon, which will feature KVBC's Kendall Tenney and Maria Silva, will help raise money for Kids to Kids' outreach efforts. These efforts have helped make a difference in the lives of more than 11,000 children and their families.

John Ritter and his significant other Hilary Westrom, through their Ritter Charitable Trust, will be matching any funds raised during the read-a-thon, up to $50,000.

"It is only fitting that Providence partner with Kids to Kids to help raise funds and awareness for an organization that brings the gift of books and reading to at-risk youth in our community," Ritter said. "The work the organization does for our community is quite remarkable and they can count on Providence being a supporter of their efforts for years to come."

In addition to its partnership with Kids to Kids, Providence has plans in place to offer activities that help build a strong community that values reading and creativity. The community will soon play host to storytelling festivals, writer workshops, cowboy poetry festivals, chataquas and much more. The community has plans to partner with a local high school to reach out and spread the gift of literacy to at-risk youth in our community.

"Building a strong community starts with a foundation of education and encouraging people to make reading books and valuing creative pursuits an integral part of their lives," said Focus's Ritter. "It's our goal to build a strong community at Providence, and we're going to ensure that residents have plenty of opportunities to enrich their lives, while lending a hand to those in need."

The theme of Providence revels in the small town traditions of the American Dream, and celebrates the optimism of American frontiers and the American West. In the community's parks and public spaces, Providence will celebrate the diversity of American voices that inspire and reflect the character and genius that is America.

For more information on Providence and Focus Property Group, visit Providencelv.com.

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