National Literacy Initiative with Pitney Bowes and the WNBA Is More Than Half-Way to One Million Minutes Goal
STAMFORD, Conn. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jul. 23, 2009--
Pitney Bowes Inc. (NYSE:PBI) and the Women’s National Basketball
Association (WNBA) announced today that youth nationwide have
collectively read for more than 500,000 minutes in the “Fast
Break To Reading” program. The joint initiative between Pitney Bowes
and the WNBA encourages young students to read throughout the summer and
track their minutes at http://www.wnba.com/fbtr/.
The goal is for youth to collectively reach one million minutes of
reading time.
“Literacy and education are critical to an individual’s self-sufficiency
and success,” said Juanita James, chief marketing and communications
officer, Pitney Bowes. “We are delighted to see so many young students
reading and participating in the Fast Break To Reading program this
summer and look forward to reaching the goal of one million minutes of
reading time at the end of the season.”
“When we launched this initiative earlier this season, we thought it
would be a great opportunity for our young fans to participate in a fun
program where they can also learn about the importance of education and
reading,” said WNBA President Donna Orender. “We are thrilled to see
that we are half-way to the one million minutes goal and applaud
everyone for their efforts.”
Ten WNBA teams are participating in the Fast Break To Reading program:
the Atlanta Dream, Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun, Detroit Shock, Indiana
Fever, Los Angeles Sparks, New York Liberty, Phoenix Mercury, Seattle
Storm and Washington Mystics. Each team tipped-off a local program in
June in collaboration with a local literacy organization. The teams have
also been working with Pitney Bowes to hold Reading Timeouts to read to
area youth and speak about the importance of reading.
As the nonprofit literacy organization for the national program, the National
Center for Family Literacy (NCFL) is also helping to raise awareness
of literacy and education, encouraging young students to participate and
offering tips for families on how to make reading more fun and effective
this summer.
About Pitney Bowes:
Pitney Bowes is a $6.3 billion global technology leader whose products,
services and solutions deliver value within the mailstream and beyond.
Founded in 1920, our company’s 35,000 employees deliver technology,
service and innovation to more than two million customers worldwide. For
more information about Pitney Bowes, its products, services and
solutions, visit www.pb.com.
About the WNBA:
The WNBA is a unique global sports property combining competition,
sportsmanship and entertainment value with its status as an icon for
social change, achievement and diversity. Comprised of 13 teams, the
WNBA is the most successful women’s professional team sports league in
the world. The league concluded its historic 12th regular season with
increases in attendance, ratings, Web traffic and merchandise sales. The
2009 WNBA season tipped off June 6 on ABC.
Through WNBA Cares, the WNBA is deeply committed to creating programs
that improve the quality of life for all people, with a special emphasis
on programs that promote a healthy lifestyle and positive body image,
increase breast and women’s health awareness, support youth and family
development, and focus on education. For more information on the WNBA,
log on to www.wnba.com.
Source: Pitney Bowes Inc.
Media:
Pitney Bowes Inc.
Karen King, 203-351-6189
karen.king@pb.com
or
WNBA
Dina
Skokos, 212-407-8840
dskokos@nba.com
