Teah found her passion at an early age. An avid reader, 13-year-old Teah had accumulated a large library of books over the years.

From the magical Harry Potter series to Chris Colfer’s The Land of Stories, Teah loved the adventures she could take just by opening up a new book.

Her love of reading and her passion for helping others made her want to get involved with the charity, “Reading to Angels,” a local nonprofit program that collects and distributes books to children in need. The program was established in loving memory of 6-year-old Sydney Glazer who loved to read.

Teah started collecting books by hosting book drives throughout the community – setting up a booth at her temple and her school, as well as contacting friends and family. She even reached out to her elementary school librarian to see if they had books available to donate.

Through her efforts, she ended up with more than 1,500 books!

She generously donated more than 1,000 of those books to Orange County United Way’s OC Reads program, which promotes early childhood literacy, to help other children foster a love of reading. The books will be distributed to local schools, MOMS Orange County, family resource centers, children museums, youth shelters, community outreach efforts, preschools, early learning institutions and literacy programming.

OC Reads encourages parents to read aloud to their kids for 15 minutes every day from birth to age five. Reading aloud helps children engage in stories, talk, learn and expand their view of the world.

Teah’s donation will make books available to children who may not otherwise have access to building a home library.

At such a young age, Teah is already an inspiration to everyone around her. She is driven, passionate and truly making a difference in her community through her leadership, selfless gestures and charitable heart.

Thank you, Teah, for helping prepare our next generation to live happy, healthy, productive lives through early grade reading and literacy programs.

Anyone at any age can get involved! If you’d like to make a difference in your community, contact Orange County United Way at info@unitedwayoc.org to learn about opportunities available.