Laundry Luv and LaundryCares Foundation Work to Bridge Literacy Gap Throughout Greater Abilene

OAKBROOK TERRACE, IL, November 21, 2022 – The LaundryCares Foundation welcomes the community of Abilene, Texas to experience a Free Laundry and Literacy Day event at Laundry Luv on Wednesday, December 7. Guests can enjoy complimentary laundry services and cleaning products plus free food and fun activities for children and adults from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. (CDT). There is no limit to the amount of clothing and linens that can be brought in to wash and dry for free.

During the event at 3202 North 1^st Street, Suite A, Abilene, Laundry Luv will unveil its new Read, Play & Learn space where children have access to literacy-rich materials while their caregivers launder clothes and linens. Local leadership and Abilene Public Library staff will officiate a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 4:00 p.m. to formally open the Read, Play & Learn space. Immediately afterward, librarians will host a story time and remain onsite for families to sign up for library cards and learn about library programs.

Throughout the afternoon, children can play educational games, participate in reading activities, and get a free book from Scholastic^® and Sesame Street^®. The Laundry Cares Foundation will also handout Sesame Street printed toolkits for parents to use at home.

Read, Play & Learn spaces, open in select laundromats across the country, offer safe, comfortable learning environments to support school readiness, a need that is often unmet in underserved communities. The programs are made possible through the LaundryCares Foundation and Too Small to Fail who together formed the Laundry Literacy Coalition to help support young children’s early language development.

The LaundryCares Foundation works with laundromat owners and community organizations throughout the U.S. to connect communities with literacy resources. Interested parties can enroll in the LaundryCares Network at no charge to become part of the movement that’s helping to bridge the large child literacy gap in historically excluded communities.

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About the LaundryCares Foundation

The LaundryCares Foundation is dedicated to enriching communities through the coordinated efforts of local businesses, community leaders and individuals to help better the lives of their neighbors. Since 2006, LaundryCares’ three pillars of philanthropy include offering free laundry services, support of key literacy skills in early childhood development, and disaster relief assistance.

The LaundryCares Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Coin Laundry Association (CLA) a national, nonprofit organization, with a membership of more than 300 manufacturers and distributors, and 1,500 owners in the self-service laundry industry. For more information about the LaundryCares Foundation, visit laundrycares.org.

About Too Small to Fail

Too Small to Fail, the early childhood initiative of the Clinton Foundation, promotes early brain and language development by supporting parents and caregivers with tools to talk, read, and sing with their young children from birth. Today, almost 60 percent of children in the United States start kindergarten unprepared, lagging behind their peers in critical language and reading skills. Through partnerships with pediatricians, hospitals, faith-based leaders, community-based organizations, businesses, entertainment industry leaders, and others, Too Small to Fail is meeting parents where they are to help them prepare their children for success in school and beyond. Whether at the pediatrician’s office or the playground, Too Small to Fail aims to make small moments big by creating opportunities for meaningful interactions anytime, anywhere. Learn more at www.toosmall.org.