EducationKansas Masonic Literacy Center to Receive Literacy Legacy Award

Topeka, Kansas (August 18, 2021)—The Kansas Masonic Literacy Center (KMLC) has been nominated and selected by Storytime Village, Inc. to receive the Literacy Legacy award at the Read and Rise Breakfast Gala at 7 am on Friday, September 3, 2021, at Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas. The event will celebrate individuals and organizations that are improving the lives of Kansas children through literacy.

The host of the event, Storytime Village, Inc., is a Kansas-based children’s literacy nonprofit organization. The event will feature Sonia Manzano, an award-winning actor, author, and advocate. Attendees will include representatives from the Kansas Masonic Foundation on behalf of the Kansas Masonic Literacy Center and other award honorees, which have previously included the Kansas Health Foundation and PBS Kansas, among others.

The Kansas Masonic Literacy Center is based at Emporia State University but benefits children throughout the state. It receives funding from the Kansas Masonic Foundation, which is a nonprofit organization established for the purpose of expanding Masonic philanthropy. The partnership between the Kansas Masonic Literacy Center and the Kansas Masonic Foundation is in conjunction with Emporia State University.

“We are honored to be nominated and selected to receive such a prestigious award,” said Robert A. Shively, the executive director of the Kansas Masonic Foundation headquartered in Topeka, Kansas. “While other community-based clubs promote events to raise money for charity, the Masons primarily donate funds directly from our 14,000 Kansas members, which is facilitated by nearly 200 Masonic Lodges throughout the state. Through the foundation, Kansas Masons have provided more than $50 million to charitable endeavors over the years, such as the Kansas Masonic Literacy Center.”

The Kansas Masonic Foundation has provided more than $1.5 million in funding to the Kansas Masonic Literacy Center over the past five years and continues its commitment to literacy throughout Kansas. The Kansas Masonic Literacy Center provides service and support to schools, teachers, and students across Kansas and to families and community members at the center, as well as support for literacy development research. Over the next 10 years, the Kansas Masonic Literacy Center is projected to transform the lives of more than 50,000 children throughout Kansas.

“When we attend the Read and Rise Breakfast Gala and accept the Literacy Legacy award, we will be honoring all the individual Kansas Masons who have possessed the amazing generosity to benefit their fellow Kansans,” said Shively.

About the Kansas Masonic Foundation:
As the philanthropic arm of Kansas Masons, the Kansas Masonic Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to benefiting Kansas communities and supporting fellow Masons and their families. Since its inception, the foundation has invested more than $50 million in Kansas communities and individuals through funding academic, scientific, and charitable endeavors. For additional information about the Kansas Masonic Foundation and to get involved, click here.