We’re Focused on What Matters Most Right Now in Rockford, Illinois!

At the Junior League of Rockford we live in the moment. To us, that means adjusting our focus according to our community’s most pressing needs. Our work is always evolving, and that keeps us on our toes, striving for progress, and preparing to take on whatever comes next.  

The Junior League of Rockford is committed to addressing the complex issues of literacy throughout our community. Our project will focus on building types of literacy that help Rockford women – of all ages – get ahead, such as workplace, technology, financial, nutritional, health, and digital literacy as well as addressing the ongoing problem of early childhood literacy.   

Our Objectives with Literacy Leaders:
1. Literacy for women through programs like the Junior League’s Women’s Conference.
2. Adolescent literacy; including poetry slam, book drives, children’s own published books.
3. Adult and Cultural Literacy – With no one solution in addressing literacy, programming
under this project could include TED-style talks, virtual webinars, and book donations. 

We’re Creating Fulfilling Leadership Opportunities Throughout Rockford

The Junior League of Rockford offers so much more than local volunteering opportunities! Our League of leaders creates real change by advancing social activism-focused projects that directly benefit the communities of Rockford. By giving women the tools to lead, educating them about their communities’ needs, and helping them put their unique brand of creativity and skill to work, Junior League of Rockford is making a big impact on Rockford.  

We’re Transforming Rockford Communities By Challenging the Status Quo

No matter what we’re currently focusing on, the Junior League of Rockford’s work centers around improving our local communities through effective action and leadership. We have identified literacy as the most pressing issue in our community right now, and we are helping local women take action to resolve it.  

Bookworm Vending Machines 

We are partnering with Crusader Clinic to place Bookworm Vending Machines in pediatric clinics located in underserved areas in the Rockford community. These vending machines will be filled with new books of varying skill levels. When a child visits the clinic for a scheduled well-baby/child exam, they will be given a special token to use in the vending machine to choose a new book. The idea of being able to pick out their very own book will make them excited to read it. Our goal is to fill the vending machines with books that will represent the demographics of the children that they are serving. We are currently sourcing a wide variety of diverse books so these babies and children can see themselves in the books they are choosing. 

These book vending machines are manufactured in the USA and are specifically engineered to ensure every token receives a book without any hang-ups. Each machine can be customized with 

varying tray sizes to handle a diverse selection of books. Each vending machine can hold up to 300 books depending on the size and shape of the books. The vending machines also have beautiful vibrant vinyl wraps on the outside that can be customized to our partners’ specifications. 

We placed our first vending machine at Crusader Clinic May 31, 2023. They have already given away 900 books. The program has been such a success that they would like to place vending machines in all of their clinics. 

The United Way’s United for Literacy Initiative 

The Junior League of Rockford is one of the organizations that is a part of the United Way of Rock River Valley has partnered with nearly 30 local organizations, including 13 who have already received funds, to launch ‘United for Literacy,’ an initiative that is using research-based strategies to tackle Winnebago County’s low literacy rate, which currently sits at just 32% or 1 in 3 children. The bold goal of ‘United for Literacy’ is to increase the literacy rate in Winnebago County from 32% to 75% by 2034. 

The initiative will impact thousands of children and their families in Winnebago County with collaborative and connected programs and resources that include books and literacy kits for newborn 

families at SwedishAmerican and Mercyhealth, the recruitment and retention of tutors at Boys & Girls Club of Rockford, the addition of book vending machines at Crusader Clinic, various reading and school readiness programs at local churches, Discovery Center, Patriots Gateway Center, Rockford Park District, the Rockford and Cherry Valley public libraries, and much more. 

We believe that these impactful actions have the power to bring us closer to our goal of addressing the ongoing problem of childhood literacy.  

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