With a toss of the pink dice and a cry of "Bunco," holiday stress rolls away and another child goes to school ready to read and succeed. The Learning Center is hosting an evening of Ladies’ Big Bunco at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 20, at The Center on Washington Street. Players don’t need experience or skill to play: roll three dice, add your points to your partner’s, and move to the next table. No gambling, just lots of laughter and conversation with friends and new acquaintances.

While players enjoy delicious food and beverages and win holiday themed door prizes, their $20 entry fee will be helping Newton County’s youngest learners. The Learning Center’s mission is to provide parents and adult caregivers of children birth to age five with information and programs that stimulate the brain development and language acquisition necessary for children to be reading ready when they enroll in school.

The Learning Center provides books and programs to thousands of Newton County children every year and depends on community donations to reach as many families as possible.

"Especially in a tight economy, we must remember that helping our youngest generation learn to read is not a stopgap, but a solution to our community’s problems," says Mollie Melvin, executive director of The Learning Center. "Reading is the single most important skill that allows our children to succeed in school and to become adults who can support their families, make informed voting decisions, and contribute to their community as taxpayers and citizens. We can change the rate of poverty, homelessness, high school dropout, teen pregnancy, and crime by breaking the cycle of illiteracy. The way to do that is by reading, singing, and talking every child as they are learning how to talk. The Learning Center gives parents and caregivers the tools to do just that."

To reserve a seat for Ladies’ Big Bunco or for more information about The Learning Center’s programs, go online at www.leapintobooks.org or call (770) 787-2778.