CABLE 17 HELPS KIDS WITH READING
By Andrew Crow
There's a new man in town and he has a sidekick to help him. His name is "Ranger Read" and his trusty reading sidekick is "Causeway" the buffalo. They're both running around Davis County teaching elementary kids the importance of reading daily.
Both characters can be seen on Davis County cable channel 17 at 4 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and at 9 a.m. on Saturday mornings. Starting with the first airing on October 24, Ranger Read and Causeway will be visiting numerous local county elementary schools to do live tapings of the show.
In partnership with the cable 17 in the endeavor will be the Davis County Chamber of Commerce, the "Davis Reads" program and the county library system. Chris Dallin of the chamber of commerce and the Davis County commissioners will be the county representatives behind the program.
Dallin, on the program, "We started the Davis Reads program about two years ago. We invited local celebrities to read to children at their schools, and frankly, the kids didn't care less who the local celebrity was reading to them. Then a few months ago we thought about using a character like Ranger Read and have immediately found that the kids respond to Ranger Read and Causeway much more warmly than they did with the celebrity guests."
The actor playing Ranger Read is Layton resident David Haight. Haight is a former member of the Screen Actors Guild and is enjoying his return to the acting arena. "I never thought I'd get back into the business. But, I really enjoy it and I hope I can help start something good here for the Davis County children," Haight said.
The first shows were filmed at Syracuse Elementary in the library there. According to cable 17 representatives, the first shows were from Syracuse Elementary will continue to be aired during the first couple of weeks while the show starts to take off.
To get the story straight, Ranger Read and Causeway both live in a cabin on Antelope Island and take care of the wildlife that live out there. They both love helping out so much out there that they both decided to come to the mainland and help out others here.
Ranger Read routinely reminds children to take out there remote after every show and turn off their television. "After you turn off that television, pick up one of your favorite books and ask your parents to read it to you. They will look a little confused and surprised, but they'll love to do it," Ranger Read said in the first episode.
Haight and Dallin are very excited for this new program. Dallin hopes the show will give children an incentive to read everyday instead of playing outside all day long.
"If kids can read everyday for at least a little while, they will learn so much more. Playing is great for kids, but 30 minutes a day to read and stimulate the mind is such a valuable thing for our children to learn," Dallin said.
The characters, viewers will notice, have the live children-aged audience mesmerized while Ranger Read is reading. "They're so attentive to the story and to Ranger Read and Causeway. That's exactly what we're looking for with this program," Dallin added.
The funding for the program is scarce and will need to continually come in for the show to thrive. Channel 17 and the chamber of commerce are relying on local funding for the worthwhile cause and to keep the program afloat.
Cable 17 is only available to cable television subscribers. Those who have dish or basic television cannot access Davis cable 17 from their televisions. Those with dish who want this program in their homes need to send a letter to their dish provider requesting it be added to their channel lineup. If enough letters are sent, the dish providers could potentially add the channel to its programming packages.
Aside from the television program, Ranger Read and Causeway will be making public appearances around the county to local schools. They both will try and make as much time as possible for the appearances to encourage reading amongst all Davis County children.
Carter Bruett, a local elementary student, said about reading, "It's so fun to read. Reading takes you to different places where you can imagine those places and become the characters there. In my opinion, it's better to read the story and use your mind, rather than go and see the movie."
The "Davis Reads" program has recently handed out 15,000 bracelets to local students for their reading efforts and plans on issuing many more in the upcoming months in correlation with the show's success.
Ranger Read and the Reading Rangers program is Davis County's way of showing it cares about our children's academic progress, starting at an early age. The show will spark kids' interest in reading and will show them the true joy that can be had from reading daily.
Haight, on the joy of reading, added, "Your mind is the greatest TV you'll ever find." The goal of Ranger Read and Causeway is just that, open the televisions that are in all children's minds.
