Sandy’s Summer Splash Into Reading
Hall of Fame 2025
Greater Wausau Area’s reading incentive program & literacy fundraiser
$5,675 for Wausau Area literacy initiatives!
THE RESULTS ARE IN!
Congrats to all participants on another fantastic year!
2025 Pledge Sponsors
These generous sponsors pledged a combined total of $5,675* toward local literacy initiatives!
*Business Sponsor Pledges:
Connexus Association – $2,000 – TWO PENNIES PER MINUTE
PENNY PER MINUTE SPONSORS:
Office Enterprises, Inc. – $750 | Inspired by Design Interiors – $500 | Westfal Staffing – $300 | Findorff – $300 | Young’s Remodeling – $300 | JARP – $250 | Wausau Tax & Accounting – $250 | Advantage Insurance Services – $225 | SK Design – $200 | Astia Health – $200 | Mosinee Family Dental – $100
*Individual Pledges:
Tara Belle – $200 | Jeff Mills – $100
2025 Prizes
Winners were announced at the
Book Fair
Friday, August 1, 2025
Wausau Barnes & Noble
226810 Rib Mountain Dr
Wausau, WI 54401
Announcements 11:00 – 11:30am
~ Prizes ~
~ Goody Bags for the first 30 announcements attendees ~
A percentage of every purchase made at the Wausau Barnes & Noble on Friday, August 1 funded local literacy programs.
*Does not include Starbucks
LITERACY PROGRAM BENEFICIARIES
Wausau Early Birds Rotary Club Reading to Go Program
The Wausau Early Birds Rotary Club Reading to Go program is a group of caring Rotary members who teach early literacy strategies in collaboration with Wausau School District, D.C. Everest School District and Newman Catholic Schools.
McLit – Marathon County Literacy Council
McLit Mission: Improving quality of life through literacy
McLit Vision: To be an organization that provides educational information and resources to everyone through the promotion of literacy programs, and support those in need by mentoring, tutoring, teaching, and coaching.
McLit tutors find themselves addressing our community’s growing ESL (English as a second language) tutoring needs.
BENEFITS OF FUNDING LOCAL LITERACY
Local literacy initiatives help the people in our own community reduce poverty, improve health, reduce the probability of incarceration and become upwardly mobile!
Who’s Sandy?
~ From the event organizer and author-illustrator, Jessica Kopecky
Sandy is the main character of Secret of the Starflower: Rainbow of Spectra, an award-winning, full-color children’s chapter book I published in the summer of 2021. Parents gave feedback that the story engaged their reluctant readers. The following summer I created a yearly reading program to further incentivize young readers and boost literacy. In 2025, the event partnered with the Wausau Early Birds Rotary Club.
