Reach Out and Read took part in President Obama's Summer 2009 United We Serve Initiative, welcoming U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services Kathleen Sebelius to the Reach Out and Read Program at Takoma Park Pediatrics in Maryland.

Reach Out and Read's impact is magnified and enhanced by the work and the dedication of thousands of volunteers nationwide. Reach Out and Read volunteers read to children in waiting rooms, they organize community book drives, they build bookcases and paint murals on walls, they help organize fundraising events, and they provide critical administrative support at the National Center and our Coalitions.

In fact, Reach Out and Read is one of the largest providers of volunteer opportunities nationwide!

Reach Out and Read participated in the United We Serve Initiative in 2009, providing more than 2,000 volunteering opportunities at Reach Out and Read Programs nationwide through www.Serve.gov.

Reach Out and Read's doctors, nurses, and medical staff all volunteer the hundreds of thousands of hours they spend each year promoting early literacy and school readiness for the 3.9 million children we serve.

"I had just finished my shift as a volunteer reading and was pulling out of the parking lot when I saw a little 4-year-old boy jumping up and down waving to me. As I rolled my window down, I recognized a boy that I had been reading to that morning. He was yelling, 'Thank you reading lady! Thank you for reading to me!' As I left, I had a very good feeling knowing that I had made an impression on this little boy!"

"One day I was reading to a group of kids, and there was an older gentleman sitting in the corner. I continued to read story after story, and the man seemed to get closer and closer. His face was filled with concentration, and I could see from the corner of my eye that he was listening intently. The kids were so involved with the story that they didn't even realize he had joined them. I could not help but stop and ask him if he knew the story I was reading. He immediately responded no, but explained that he loved to hear the enthusiasm I had in telling the story. He continued to tell me that when he was little, he never had anyone read to him. He said he found himself inspired and wanted to know how he could read to his own kids and have them so intrigued and involved in the story. I found myself telling him how Reach Out and Read works and how important reading and sharing with his children can be. I felt today that one person was changed by this program, and that is so rewarding to me!"