In Georgia, 17 percent of adults lack basic literacy skills,
meaning that they struggle to perform even the most basic of
concrete and simple tasks like reading a set of instructions.
One simple thing that our community can do to improve local
literacy rates is to make books accessible to area children and
foster an interest in reading whenever possible. Our schools and
libraries are eager participants in this cause, encouraging
children to read in class and at home. Tanner Health System,
too, has joined the effort but we need your support. The Tanner
ReadER program provides age-appropriate books to every child who
visits one of Tanner Health System’s three regional, 24-hour
emergency departments. These books will give parents an
opportunity to share an escape with their child into a story,
away from the trauma or illness that made their visit necessary.
Tanny the turtle, the Tanner ReadER program’s new mascot, will
promote reading to children and parents visiting Tanner’s
emergency departments and to others