FARMINGTON – Students clapped and cheered their peers at W.G. Mallett School Thursday morning, as six participants in a reading program received new bikes courtesy of Maine Masonic Lodge No. 20 of Farmington.
The Bikes for Books program kicked off this spring in Mallett and Cascade Brook School, with students reading books in exchange for entries in a random drawing for a bike and bike helmet. A girl and a boy in each grade from kindergarten through fifth grade will be awarded a new bike. The more books a student reads, the more entries into the drawing and the better his or her chance of winning a bicycle will be.
Librarian Amanda Roberts, Principal Tracy Williams and five local masons, Gerry Gilman, David Keith, Clyde Ross, Jack Peck and Shane Cote were on hand for the Mallett School drawing. CBS is holding its event later today.
Winners included Kindergarteners Jayda White and Wiekko Sillanpaa, 1st graders Isaac Chick and Bella Duvall, and 2nd graders Elizabeth Mills and Xander Mason.
Other programs of the local lodge include The Masonic Child Identification Program, also known as CHIP, that provides comprehensive child identification and protection against abduction. This program is funded by the Charitable Foundation of the Grand Lodge of Maine and is provided at no cost to every Maine family who wishes to participate. The process involves computerized fingerprinting, DNA swabbing, a short video presentation of every child and an identification card. The entire packet goes home with the parents and guardians that can make it available to enforcement agencies and news media in the unfortunate event a child becomes lost or abducted.
The lodge also participates in the Angel Fund, a program known to the local public school administrators. If the school notices a child is in need of weather appropriate clothing, boots, sneakers etc. the Angel Fund will purchase or refund the cost of the item discretely and anonymously.
Thank you! Xander loves his new bike and helmet.
Bella your a shining star!!!! Happy riding.
Congratulations to the children for receiving their awards and thank you to the Masons who support this program which gives children the incentive to read.