Bulls open Reading and Learning Center at Douglas Park Fieldhouse in the Lawndale community

Salmons and Johnson attend ribbon cutting ceremony at Douglas Park Fieldhouse.

In the Community CharitaBulls mybulls RSS

April 14, 2009 – On Tuesday, John Salmons and Linton Johnson hosted the grand opening of the Chicago Bulls Reading and Learning Center at Douglas Park Fieldhouse in the Lawndale community.

Beginning at 3:30 p.m., the players, along with Benny the Bull, were on hand for an official ribbon cutting ceremony to welcome a group of local children to the newly renovated room.

During the past months, the Bulls completed an “Extreme Makeover” by renovating an existing room to provide a newly furnished, painted and fully-equipped area for students to learn.

Constructed to provide children with an area to strengthen literacy skills and expand their education, the room is equipped with a selection of books, computers, reference materials and a “Step Up to Reading” corner. The room also includes new furniture and Bulls memorabilia.

To celebrate the Reading and Learning Center opening, the players participated in reading sessions and computer games with the children.

The Bulls would like to give a special thanks to McDonald’s and Hinckley Springs, who provided food and refreshments for everyone attending the event.

The Bulls, Rush University Medical Center and ComEd are coordinating the event as part of the Bulls’ ongoing Read To Achieve program, which inspires literacy among Chicago’s youth. The Bulls have committed to building a Reading and Learning Center at a Chicago youth facility each year. Similar centers have been established at the Martin Luther King Boys and Girls Club, Rush University Medical Center, Cook Elementary School, William H. Brown Elementary School, and Victor Herbert Elementary School. Rush University Medical Center and ComEd are partners of the Bulls Read To Achieve program.