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The Barbara Bush Foundation for Family
Literacy hosted its New York Celebration
of Reading on Wednesday, November 20,
2024, at the
Lotos Club, one of the oldest literary
clubs in the U.S. This signature event,
held to raise support for the Barbara
Bush Foundation’s nationwide literacy
work, featured appearances by
bestselling authors and special guests
including Brooke Shields,
Lauren Bush Lauren, Jessamine
Chan, Kirsten Miller, Miss
New York 2024 and literacy advocate
Abigail Quammen, and Ali Velshi,
as well as a video message
from Jenna Bush Hager.
The New York Celebration of Reading
served as the launch of the
Barbara Bush Centennial – a yearlong
series of special events honoring the
100th anniversary of Barbara
Bush’s birth.
“I believe literacy has power and
freedom in it –not just the escape, but
the power that comes from education and
knowledge,” said actress, author and
entrepreneur Brooke Shields. “I am so
blessed to have had access to all of
that, and sharing it – especially with
our young people –
is very important to me.”
“The joy and magic of reading is, for
me, inextricably linked to empowerment
and survival. I don’t think it’s too
much to say that reading can change
lives. In times of trouble, reading has
comforted and healed me, giving me
agency in situations where I felt
helpless. As a mother, it has been a joy
to watch my own daughter develop a love
of reading, which will hopefully help
her make sense of our world and how she
eventually chooses to use her own
voice,” shared Jessamine Chan, New York
Times bestselling author of “The School
for Good Mothers.”
“Books embolden you, make you dream.
They encourage free thought and
empathy,” said Kirsten Miller, author of
“Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned
Books. “Without stories and books, most
women would still be walking the one
worn-out path that was available to
their mothers and grandmothers. Men
without fancy titles would still be
forced to follow their father’s
footsteps. The downtrodden might have
found it impossible to lift themselves
up. Stories and books have made the
modern world possible – by showing
ordinary people all the lives they might
lead.”
TODAY’s Read with Jenna book club
will participate in the series of
Celebration of Reading events.
Jenna Bush Hager provided a special
message to New York Celebration of
Reading attendees via video.
“I’m looking forward to this yearlong
celebration of my grandmother’s life and
legacy, and of course her passion for
literacy,” said Jenna Bush Hager. “As a
mom of three, I know how fortunate I am
to have the opportunity to share my love
of reading with my own children, and I
want what my grandmother wanted, which
is for every family in America to have
that same opportunity.”
The event was co-chaired by Lori Wachs,
who serves as a member of the
Foundation’s board of directors, and Ali
Velshi, host of “Velshi” and Chief
Correspondent for MSNBC.
Over the course of 2025, the Barbara
Bush Centennial will include a series of
Celebration of Reading events in
Miami, Florida, Kennebunkport, Maine,
Dallas, Texas, and Washington, D.C.;
special initiatives highlighting Barbara
Bush’s extraordinary life and legacy;
and the launch of new family literacy
programming.
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About the Barbara Bush Foundation for
Family Literacy: The
Barbara Bush Foundation for Family
Literacy has been the nation’s leading
advocate for family literacy for more
than three decades. Established by
former First Lady Barbara Bush in
1989, today the Foundation is a public
charity providing high-quality programs,
resources, education initiatives, and
research to help families and
communities nationwide build brighter
futures through literacy.
Learn more at
www.BarbaraBush.org.
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