The Memphis Cook Convention Center (MCCC) will kick-off its 2011 Books4Bikes campaign to benefit the students at Florida- Kansas Elementary at the weekly luncheon of the Memphis Rotary Club on Tuesday, November 15, 2011 at 12:00 noon. Following a tradition that began more than six years ago the Rotary Club will donate the first bike to the Convention Center’s effort. The MCCC’s goal is to collect more than 75 new bikes that will be awarded to the students just before their Christmas holiday break.
The employees of the Memphis Cook Convention Center selected Florida-Kansas Elementary as its Adopt-a-School in 2010. Last year the Books4Bikes campaign donated more than 75 bicycles to Florida- Kansas Elementary encouraging students to read thousands of books. Over the last seven years, more than 550 new bikes have been given to Memphis City School students.
“We created Books4Bikes several years ago as a way to help encourage the students to read,” said Pierre Landaiche, MMG’s Vice President/General Manager of the Memphis Cook Convention Center and Cannon Center for the Performing Arts. “And to have the Rotary Club donate the first bike to our campaign every year means a great deal to us.”
Florida-Kansas Elementary Principal Tracie Greer with her staff will monitor each student’s efforts. The Convention Center will award bikes to students who read the most books, students who make the most improvement and students who receive the best test scores on their books. The MCCC is asking individuals and companies to donate a new bike or $100, so the Convention Center staff can purchase bikes suited to the winning student’s size and gender. “We hope to give away 12 bikes to each grade, and we’ll have the award program at the school right before the holiday break, so for a lot of the kids it’s an early Christmas,” Landaiche said.
