Chappaqua Book Festival Founder Receives National Literacy Award

(Washington D.C.) Dawn Evans Greenberg, founder and executive director of the Chappaqua Children's Book Festival, was recently honored by the Daughters of the American Revolution National Headquarters by receiving first place in the National Literacy Promotion Committee's Outstanding Service Contest by a Member for her outstanding achievement in the promotion of literacy development in children.

The Chappaqua Children's Book Festival, one of the largest children's festivals in the Northeast, encourages young children to read and supports reading mentorship programs Westchester County, New York. Proceeds from the all-volunteer festival benefit the JCY-Westchester Community Partners, Meet the Writers, and Projects Sunshine Book Club (PSBC), which bring books and authors into area schools and children's hospitals. The seventh annual Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival will be held on October 5, 2019, connecting 140 renowned authors and illustrators with thousands of readers.

The Chappaqua Children's Book Festival held a mini-festival in May 2018 to benefit and promote 'Summer Reading Buddies', a reading program sponsored by the JCY-Westchester Community Partners that serves hundreds of children at the Yonkers and Ossining Public Libraries during the months of July and August. In addition, the Festival also partnered with the Chappaqua PTA to create a program called 'Chappaqua Reads – Chappaqua Includes.' The program gave 2,000 copies of the book "El Deafo" by Cece Bell to students in Chappaqua schools to help promote conversations about empathy and inclusiveness in our local youth.

Dawn also placed first in the Northeastern Division Literacy Promotion Committee's Outstanding Service Contest by a Member. She will receive her award in September at the New York State DAR Conference in Albany, NY. Dawn is a member of the Polly Cooper Chapter, NSDAR. She is working with Westchester County to bring One Book Westchester to the county in 2020.

The National Society Daughters of the American Revolution was founded in 1890 to promote historic preservation, education, and patriotism. Its members descend from the patriots who won American independence during the Revolutionary War. With more than 185,000 members in approximately 3,000 chapters worldwide, DAR is one of the world's largest and most active service organizations. To learn more about the work of today's DAR, visit www.DAR.org.

For more information about the Polly Cooper Chapter, NSDAR, their activities, and membership, please email the chapter at info@pollycooperdar.org.

The Chappaqua Children’s Book Festival is a 501c3 nonprofit on a mission to put a book in the hands of every child. For more information about the festival, authors, and sponsorship and volunteer opportunities, visit www.ccbfestival.org.