Father's Day from Afar

Bestselling storybook Guess How Much I Love You celebrates 20^th anniversary as deployed military parents use it to deliver a special 

‘I love you’ message to their kids back home this Father’s Day

I heard about this cool project through Candlewick Press. I love that families are able to connect through books. Here is what Candlewick has to say about the project:

"While millions of children will be celebrating Father’s Day with their dads on June 21, for many children whose fathers are serving in the military, dad won’t be at home. But thanks to nonprofit United Through Reading and a very special storybook, there’s a way for every dad to tell his kids he loves them this Father’s Day – however far away he might be.

Nonprofit United Through Reading keeps military families connected by offering service members the opportunity to be video-recorded reading storybooks to their children at home from locations worldwide. Although the story may be recorded in a tent in Afghanistan, the child sitting at home watching it can feel like daddy’s home for a few moments before they go to sleep, or whenever they need him. Guess How Much I Love You celebrates the unique bond between father and child, and has struck a chord with many military families. The story serves as a reminder to children that no matter how far away they may be from their parent, their love remains strong enough to bridge even the greatest distances.

This heartfelt video was created especially for Father’s Day and features military parents reading Guess How Much I Love You to their children back home in a United Through Reading recording."

The statistics that United Through Reading provides are pretty impressive too:

• 81% of participants report a decrease in their children’s anxiety about the deployment
• 78% of participants report increases in their child’s interest in reading and books
• 83%% of recordings are watched nearly every day or more often
• Each recording may be watched more than 250 times during a ten-month deployment
• 25,000 recordings, with an average of two children at home, over the course of a year of deployments adds up to more than a million bedtime stories each year

This makes my heart happy.