DC MLK Memorial Library auditorium to be named after Jeff Bezos following $2.7 million donation
WASHINGTON - The auditorium at D.C.'s Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library will be named for Amazon founder Jeff Bezos following his $2.7 million donation to the library's literacy program for young children.
Blue Origin founder Jeff Bezos speaks after receiving the 2019 International Astronautical Federation (IAF) Excellence in Industry Award during the the 70th International Astronautical Congress at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washing
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The library's Board of Trustees voted Wednesday. Bezos made the donation last December to support the Beyond the Book program which provides children and their families with books, family literacy programs, and support for transitions from Pre-K to Kindergarten.
"The Foundation is deeply honored by Mr. Bezos' generosity. His gift—the largest ever received by the foundation—will make a real difference in the lives of children and families in the District of Columbia," said DC Public Library Foundation Executive Director, Rob Hartman last year in a statement. "Thanks to his donation, by extending the length and outreach of Beyond the Book to Grade Three, some of DC's most vulnerable children will now receive a strong foundation for academic and life success. The Foundation is proud to have been the recipient of this significant donation and looks forward to the important impact it will have on childhood literacy and education in DC."
Bezos' donation is the largest ever received by the library in its 35-year history.
A mistake in the original headline did not include the word ‘auditorium’. We regret the error and have corrected the headline and our post on social media.