Thanks to a grant from the Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation, Waseca County Public Health will once again be able to provide a limited number of young families and children in Waseca County with high quality children’s books free of charge.
In partnership with children’s book publishers ABDO Publishing and Capstone Publishers, SMIF’s Literacy Grant is awarding 150 books to Waseca County Public Health to distribute to young children and their families, primarily during in-home visits.
Improving the lives of young children is one of SMIF’s core focus areas, said SMIF President and CEO Tim Penny. In addition to the Literacy Grant, SMIF recently donated $10,000 worth of books to the Waseca and NHREG Public School Districts.
Public Health Director Sarah Berry, who brought copies of some of the children’s books available through the program to the County Board meeting, said that the program makes a tangible difference in the lives of children and the County is lucky to be able to participate in it.
“We’ve been really fortunate to be recipients over the course of many years, and the families we serve are really grateful for these terrific books,” Berry said.
Through the program, the joy of reading is introduced to babies before they have even been born. Regular book installments are provided to children as they grow up, with 125 of the books the county receives through the program in English and 25 in Spanish.
The program encourages families to start building their own in-home library, while also touting the offerings of Waseca Public Library and other local libraries. Some books are also provided to grandparents who serve as care providers for their grandchildren.
To help support the program, the County Board approved an appropriation of $225 to cover the cost of attending the distribution in Owatonna, as well as annual reporting. Commissioner DeAnne Malterer praised the program for creating a lifelong appetite for reading and learning.
“As a retired educator, and as a mom and a grandma, literacy is the number one determinant for success in school for children, far and away,” Malterer said. “Every book that a kid gets read to, even when they’re too little to understand what it is, is just essential in helping them want stories and want words.”
In other business, County Administrator Michael Johnson updated the Board on implementation of the cannabis legalization law passed by the Minnesota Legislature last year. Over a year after the bill was passed, the Office of Cannabis Management is starting to provide additional information, while the Minnesota Association of Counties has provided extensive guidance.
Johnson said that counties have preeminence in determining what local zoning restrictions look like across the county, but expressed a strong commitment of working with cities and townships to ensure that implementation of regulations is coordinated.
Later this month, the licensing pre approval process will open up for those interested in getting into the cannabis industry. Under changes passed into state law this year, designed to speed up the availability of the cannabis market, eligible applicants will be selected through a lottery.
Given the wide variety of license types available, Johnson said that local officials could expect a significantly higher number of license applications than previously anticipated, especially from smaller growers, making it important for the county to decide exactly what limitations it wants to put on cannabis stores within the limitations allowed under state law.
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