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Our Vision
Our vision within Kids Read America is for every child in America to have access to quality books to read and own.
We advocate for a child’s right to read.
About Us
Founded in 2022 by a loving mother in memory of her son, Brandon Jacobe Johnson. Kids Read America is a 501 (c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting childhood literacy by putting books in the hands and homes of children.
We create and develop projects and events to inspire, encourage and nurture a lifelong love of reading because we believe reading and book ownership are critical steps in a child's journey to realizing their full potential.
We advocate for the rights of every child to have access to books and reading materials in school, at home, and in public neighborhood libraries.
Our Founder
Zebrinia Gregg
Zebrinia is a seasoned professional with a diverse background that includes military service, medical sonography, and education. She is also a self-described creative individual with a passion for art journaling, home decor, and reading. Zebrinia can often be found in bookstores and libraries, spending hours reading books and magazines while enjoying a hot chocolate.
Zebrinia founded the nonprofit organization Kids Read America in memory of her son, Brandon Jacobe Johnson, a voracious reader and lover of words. Kids Read America is dedicated to promoting child literacy and fostering a love of reading in children from birth to 12th grade. Zebrinia is deeply committed to the belief, as expressed by Tomie dePaola, that "reading is important because if you can read, you can learn anything about everything and everything about anything."
Brandon's Story
Brandon was an avid reader and always had at least two books in his possession he’d be reading simultaneously.
Brandon Jacobe Johnson
October 13, 1992 - January 29, 2021
Brandon was born October 13th, 1992 in Minot, North Dakota; his birth sparked a 28-year journey full of many twists, turns, peaks, and dips with a never-ending supply of love to support his journey.
Our son was a BRILLIANT soul! He was a FEARLESS, FREE-SPIRITED ADVENTURER with a cause of his own design.
The daredevil in Brandon surfaced at an early age when he looked at status quo society and said “I understand what you want me to be, but I’m going to show you who I actually am.” At which time he forged ahead into life as a BOLD MAVERICK.
A FEARLESS man, Brandon believed on the other side of fear lies freedom, and if you want to grow you need to be brave and take risks. He also believed if you're not uncomfortable, you're not growing. One can say Brandon possessed a restless soul, uncomfortable living an everyday humdrum existence so he set out taking risks like hiking through California’s Redwood Forest and camping out within the trunk of a giant redwood then hiking throughout Tennessee for a month-long Campers Gathering.
Our son was a FREE SPIRIT who loved to explore the unconventional roads life offered. He would say, “You just think I'm a person throwing his life away... but what if you wake up to discover that you all are actually the ones throwing your lives away by continuously working and accumulating?” He had the courage to test life’s boundaries and limits, to try things that other people may have thought impossible, impractical, or unimportant. Like when he moved to Vermont to become a lumberjack or performed with a traveling band, all while train hopping, walking, and hitchhiking across the country spanning from Georgia to Washington State. We’d often be awestruck by some of his stories, visualizing them all as a movie or a perfect Netflix series to binge.
Brandon was an avid reader and always had at least two books in his possession that he’d be reading simultaneously. He believed that when you're with books you're never alone. Even as a child, he would always carry a book instead of a toy. His first favorite book at the time was Dr. Seuss’s Foot Book which he could read independently by the age of four. As he grew older his creativity began to be expressed in his writings of poetry and short stories, which he often credited his older brother with awakening that gift.
However unconventional his life choices, Brandon was the man we raised him to be; adventurous, curious, caring, brave, self-sufficient, and a brilliant child of The Most High. We thank the Lord for blessing us with Brandon Jacobe Johnson for 28 years and allowing us to love him and see him bloom into a Beautiful young man inside and out. Brandon believed a book is a gift you can open again and again.