Connecting Mississippi Youth & Families through Literacy
December 16, 2023: The Magnolia Literacy Project (MLP) launched the Blossoms Mother-Daughter Reading Club with a virtual orientation. One week later, the group met at Lemuria Bookstore in Jackson, MS, for a book distribution social. Each member received a copy of Crystal Wilkinson’s book, Perfect Black. Wilkinson was Kentucky’s Poet Laureate from 2021-2023.
The Blossoms Mother-Daughter Reading Club exists primarily because of two young women, Natalie Dickens, who proposed the idea, and Alexia Anthony, who was instrumental in implementing the initiative by recruiting members. Since its inception, the program has expanded to serve families across the Jackson and surrounding area.
Natalie Dickens (left) was a junior Journalism and Media Studies major at Jackson State University when she recommended the idea of a mother-daughter reading club to her mother, LaWanda Dickens, MLP founder. Alexia Anthony (right) was a junior at Murrah High School and president of the school's book club when she initiated a recruitment plan. About six weeks later, the Blossoms Mother-Daughter Reading Club launched.
.jpg)