The Bees started the Buzz Reading Club in 1999 to provide elementary school students in Burlington, and the surrounding communities, with encouragement to become better students and better citizens. The Bees provide students with the opportunity to earn free tickets to Bees' games as a fun incentive to read more and improve their study habits. Since the start of the program, the Bees have handed out over 40,000 tickets to young readers from all over Southeast Iowa and Western Illinois. This past year, over 315 classrooms and nearly 5,600 students from 25 different elementary schools participated in the Buzz Reading Club. We thank these schools for their participation and hope more schools in the surrounding area will participate in the future.

A Bees staff member will visit your school to challenge students to "hit a home run!" Each participating classroom will receive a Buzz Reading Club poster to hang on the wall for students to track their progress. The poster will include a diagram of a baseball field, and teachers will set four reading goals for their students. Once the first goal is met, the student has "hit a single" and will be given a prize provided by the Bees. For each goal met, another prize will be awarded. The prizes include free tickets to Bees games and vouchers for items like hot dogs and drinks at the Community Field concession stand. Goals for the students can be set up any way your school or classroom wishes. Some ideas include number of minutes read or books completed. The length and time frame of the program are also flexible. Any and all elementary aged students are invited to participate.

After school is out, the program continues through the summer reading programs at the area public libraries. Students participating in the libraries' summer reading programs can earn a ticket as one of the prizes along the way to reaching his/her summer reading goal. On select Fridays during June and July, Bees players will be at the Burlington Public Library to read to kids that want to come and listen in a continuing effort to show kids that reading is fun.

Kids are allowed to earn as many tickets as they can throughout the year. In order to maintain the integrity of the program and insure that the students that do the work really get the reward, only kids age 14 and under will be admitted into a game with the special Reading Club ticket.

It's never too late to become a better reader. Let's set a good example for our kids and read along with them this year!

Reading Club and Honor Roll Day is a great way to reward students for their hard work throughout the school year.

Each April and/or May, the Bees host area students for two special games in the early part of the season. D.A.R.E./Reading Club Day and Honor Roll Day are annual events set aside as midweek afternoon games so students can attend the game on a field trip with their classmates.

Area fourth and fifth grade students who participate in the Bees Reading Program and/or their school's D.A.R.E. program are invited to the D.A.R.E./Reading Club Day. This day is a reward for all of their hard work and a way to reinforce the positive messages that these two programs provide. The Great River Medical Center sponsors the event with lunch provided by Hy-Vee, Sterzing's Potato Chips, Burlington Pepsi, and Lance Private Brands. All of the students attend at no cost and are fed thanks to the contributions of the sponsors.

The Bees salute the area's hard-working middle and high school students that have completed a successful school year with our Honor Roll Day. Any student who has qualified for their school's Honor Roll at some point during the past school year, or is deserving of some sort of reward for something they accomplished, will be invited to attend and cheer on the Bees. The Bees are strong supporters of education and hope that this reward will help inspire a few extra kids to new heights in the classroom this year. There is no admission charge for the students and our great sponsors will once again provide them with lunch.

Both games start at 11:30AM and the students can begin arriving anytime after 10:15. The kids bring plenty of energy and enthusiasm to the ballpark with them, making these days lots of fun to attend and be a part of.

For more information about how your child can participate in the Buzz Reading Program or how your school can participate in either D.A.R.E./Reading Club or Honor Roll Day, contact Jared Schjei at Community Field at (319) 754-5705 or by email at jared@gobees.com.