Banks looking to tune up their public image these days could take a lesson from Ray Jay.
Ray Jay is the protagonist in Ray Jay and the Grumpy Tree of East Side Park, a children’s story about a cantankerous apple tree that refuses to share his apples, written by David Hollaway, chief executive of the kids’ education company Quackenworth Inc.
But in the end (spoiler alert!), Ray Jay is able to befriend the grumpy tree and convince it to share apples with the children of East Side Park.
City National Bank in Los Angeles has been sharing its own apples with the community for almost a decade now through its “Reading is the way up” literacy program, run by Carolyn Rodriguez.
As part of the program, Rodriguez, the bank's program administrator, recently started arranging classroom visits with children’s authors.
Last month, Quackenworth’s Hollaway stopped by Synergy Charter Elementary School and Quincy Jones Elementary School in South Los Angeles to read from Ray Jay and the Grumpy Tree of East Side Park. Second and third graders from each school received a copy of the book and a writing journal.
“We’re providing these students with an experience and an opportunity that they wouldn’t have,” says Rodriguez.
The $22.7 billion-asset bank also gives back to local schools through its holiday book drive partnership with Barnes & Noble Inc.
Rodriguez estimates that the bank’s book drive efforts have put 80,000 books in local schools in California, Nevada and New York since the literacy program was launched in 2002. City National has partnered with Barnes & Noble since 2008, matching seasonal book donations made in select bookstores across the country.
“The reason we wrapped our arms around [literacy] was to invest in our future,” says Rodriguez.
“Our vision is, if you don’t like a book, put it down. If you have many books to choose from, eventually you’ll find one you like,” she adds.
The work has paid dividends for the bank as well. Positive response to the program has helped draw in new customers and employees, says bank spokesman Paul Stowell.
“We have established relationships with [prospective customers] because of this program,” says Stowell, adding that community goodwill also creates an opportunity to recruit new employees.
