ABC 7 Chicago and Harris Team Up to Motivate Chicago Area Kids With 'The Power to Read' Challenge

ABC 7 Chicago and Harris Team Up to Motivate Chicago Area Kids With 'The Power to Read' Challenge

CHICAGO, Sept. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- For the 6th consecutive year, ABC 7 Chicago and Harris team up to offer "The Power to Read," an initiative challenging children throughout the Chicagoland area to discover the joy of reading. "The Power to Read" motivates students between the ages of 5 and 12 to read three or more books between September 19 and October 28, 2006. Youngsters are encouraged to pick up an entry form at a participating Harris location, fill it out and have it signed by a parent, guardian, teacher or principal for verification. Once completed, the entry form can be dropped off at a participating Harris location.

ABC 7 Chicago and Harris will award prizes to one randomly selected winner at each of Harris' participating locations. Winners will receive one book for themselves, one book to donate to their school or library of choice from Hyperion Books for Children, as well as a "Power to Read" backpack.

In addition, there will also be one Grand Prize Winner who will receive four roundtrip tickets to any destination in the Continental U.S., as well as Hawaii and Canada; $1,000 in cash and a Radio Disney AM 1300 Party at his or her school.

Emily Barr, president and general manager of ABC 7 Chicago, said, "In 2005, the number of youngsters participating in the 'Power to Read,' skyrocketed to 2,739. Children can relate to this program because it's not about getting the highest grade or knowing the right answer, it's about discovering the sheer joy of reading. Every year 'Power to Read' has grown in popularity with kids around Chicagoland and we have no doubt it will continue to boost the number of eager readers in our area."

"We're proud to continue our support for 'The Power to Read' because it presents a wonderful incentive for children throughout Chicagoland to explore the world through books," says Yasmin Bates, executive vice president, community affairs and economic development. "Harris has a long history of supporting education in our communities, and this is a great way to teach our young people that books are fun, lessons learned are valuable and reading is rewarding."

The Radio Disney AM 1300 Party Patrol will make three appearances to promote "The Power to Read" at the following Harris branches: Saturday, October 7 at 360 West Maple Street in New Lenox; Saturday, October 14 at 6547 Grand Avenue in Gurnee; Saturday, October 21 at 5545 West Northwest Highway in Crystal Lake. On all three days, children can gather from 10:30 a.m. to 12 noon for games, music, prizes, and the chance to pick up "The Power to Read" entry forms.

For more information on "The Power to Read," please visit your local Harris branch, or ABC 7 Chicago's website, http://www.abc7chicago.com/ and click on "Contests and Promotions."

Harris is an integrated financial service organization providing more than 1 million personal, business and corporate clients with banking, lending, investing and wealth management solutions. The organization is a member of the BMO Financial Group (NYSE: BMO; TSX), which also provides corporate and investment banking services in the U.S. under the BMO Capital Markets name.

Source: ABC 7 Chicago

CONTACT: Jayme Nicholas of ABC 7 Chicago, +1-312-750-7254, or Patrick
O'Herlihy of Harris Corporate Communication, +1-312-293-8905

Web site: http://www.abc7chicago.com/

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