As many of you know from reading my column over the last 4 ½ years, I love to sing. Specifically show tunes. What you might not know about me though is that I love reading too. Well not so much “reading” as sitting on books. Or magazines. Or newspapers. Or even an iPad. Basically, if someone is reading, I want to be there, and by there, I mean “there.”
So, you can imagine my pleasure to announce that Kids Hour at the Orlando Cat Café has returned in partnership with Read to Sydney and the Kiwanis Club of Clermont. Every Wednesdays from 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm, children 12 and under along with their guardian, can come and read to the kitties, many of them who like books as much as I do! Admission includes reading with cats, kitty play time and a take-home craft project. Children are also encouraged to take a free book home from Read to Sydney and Kiwanis Club of Clermont’s lending library.
Since 2011, Read to Sydney has encouraged children to read, “One tail at a time,” using therapy dogs in settings such as schools, libraries, and other community events. The partnership with the Orlando Cat Café has allowed the Read to Sydney program to expand into the feline side and we are all excited about this partnership and inspiring children to read.
Truth be told, I did not get to meet Sydney, as she passed over the Rainbow Bridge a few years ago, but with the help of Sydney’s friends, her legacy has carried on! And with the help of our fur friends at the cat cafe, I think we might be able to form our own book club one day! I speak for all the cool cats and kittens at the Orlando Cat Café when I say that we all love being read to. And if you can’t yet pronounce a word or forget to pause at a comma, we won’t hold it against you because that’s how you learn. Believe me, we all had to learn exactly how to sprawl out on a book so that we could block the maximum amount of the text for the reader. It’s really and art. Just like reading!
The cost is $8.00 per person and reservations are highly recommended and can be made online at www.orlandocatcafe.com. Donations of new books are always welcome and can be dropped off at the Orlando Cat Café. Where you can see me totally engrossed in a book…Or maybe a magazine.
