Photo: Jonathan Phillips
Sage Powell steers a squid down Madison Ave. in Decatur during the 4th annual Madison Ave. Soap Box Derby on Saturday, September 27, 2014.
The Madison Ave Community Fund (MACF) is excited to announce the 6th annual Madison Avenue Soapbox Derby will take place on Saturday, October 1, 2016.
Registration for the race is now open at www.madisonavesoapboxderby.org
Founded in 2011 by the Madison Ave Community Fund (MACF), this unique competition challenges amateur racers to design, build and race non-motorized, gravity-powered soapbox cars. With the support of the community and neighborhood businesses, it has grown from about 20 drivers in 2011 to almost 100 drivers in last year’s derby. Derby day will include local vendors with food and drinks along with live music after the race.
This year, one hundred percent of all proceeds raised by the Derby will benefit Reading is Essential for All People (REAP).
It’s crucial for a child’s educational development that he or she become a proficient reader by the end of third grade. This is when kids start reading to learn instead of learning to read. Unfortunately, 32% of Georgia’s 4th grade students read below grade level.
Reading is Essential for All People (REAP) is a non-profit dedicated to improving reading proficiency in public school students through teacher training and enrichment. Teachers leave college without all the tools they need to reach all their readers. Shrinking school budgets and increasing time constraints make is difficult for teachers to access the necessary professional development required to meet all their readers’ needs once they are in the classroom. REAP provides teachers with specialized approaches to reading instruction that makes all readers stronger but are critical for those students who struggle.
