East Palo Alto elementary students celebrate book, backpack donations

East Palo Alto area elementary school backpacks are now 1,500 books fuller thanks to a local donation effort led by Wipro, an IT services and consulting company, and First Book, an education-focused non-profit.

The two companies teamed up for a September 29 “reading celebration” that brought 500 backpacks filled with three books each to Aspire East Palo Alto Charter School. Wipro volunteers also read stories to children after the delivery. Additional books and backpacks were delivered to Mariano Castro Elementary School and Monta Loma Elementary School.

The event is part of a year-long effort by Wipro and First Book to donate more than 6,500 books to the Mountain View and East Palo Alto communities before 2018.

“Wipro is committed to playing a role in enhancing access to books for children in the communities in which we operate,” said Anurag Behar, chief sustainability officer at Wipro.

The book donation is the second Wipro-led community event since the company opened its Mountain View-based Silicon Valley Innovation Center in early August. The company previously hosted a “Spirit of Wipro” Run on September 17 that included charity races, games and a fundraiser for First Book.

The two companies have teamed up to deliver over 118,000 books to in-need children since 2015. The goal is to distribute 200,000 books throughout the U.S. and Canada during their three-year partnership.

“With the support and dedication of Wipro employees, tens of thousands of children can enjoy the power of reading and unlock their future,” said Kyle Zimmer, president and CEO of First Book.