To read more and to do good, one book at a time—that’s the mission of Read for a Cause, an initiative that promotes childhood literacy and charitable giving. Since 2019, Read for a Cause has created children’s books and donated sale proceeds to support a variety of local nonprofits, including Home for Families. Founder Jillian Boone shares how her experience volunteering with Home for Families’ Dowd Education Programs inspired her to write Home Sweet Home, one of the first five books released when she launched Read for a Cause:
I first volunteered with HFF when I was working at the federal district court from 2014-2015. During law school, I didn't have the capacity to do much volunteer work, and I missed it… so I was excited to get back into it once I started working downtown. Childhood literacy is really important to me, so I did a little research and applied to serve as a tutor with HFF’s Dowd Education Programs. I tutored two little girls and loved it. (I still have the bookmarks they made me at the end of our time together—the starfish story really stuck with me.) My clerkship with the federal court was only for one year, so my time was short, but I continued to support HFF in different ways, such as through holiday adopt-a-family drives and Mother's Day fundraisers.
I first got the idea for what has become "Read for a Cause" in 2018. I needed a creative outlet that reminded me that there was good in the world... and children's literacy and charitable support were two causes near and dear to my heart. My idea was to write children's books, use their lessons to amplify the missions of local non-profits, and then donate the sales proceeds back to those organizations. Now I have a website, business cards, established partners, and tangible books... but back then, I just had a wild idea and a few PDF files. I'm forever grateful to HFF for being one of my first believers.
I launched Read for a Cause with five books. Home Sweet Home was one of the original five. I really believed in Home for Families' mission and how they were supporting families who were struggling to find and/or keep affordable housing. My interactions with the kids during my time as a tutor also made me want to assure them that even though things might feel unstable at the moment, people who love you can help you feel at home anywhere.
To quote Home Sweet Home: "A home's not about looks or size, you see: It's about feeling loved and safe as can be." To me, home is wherever you feel physically and emotionally safe, cared for, and valued. I think it's important for kids (and adults) to realize that people's homes may look different or change or move, but that's not something to be embarrassed or ashamed of or any less proud of. It's not about the physical structure; it's about how you feel when you're there.
