PODS® Of Chicago Partners With Great Lakes Credit Union, WLS Radio For Stack The Books Drive

CHICAGO - Sept. 5, 2013 - PRLog -- Every child deserves to be well-educated and it all starts with the power of a book. PODS^® of Chicago (http://www.pods.com/chicago.aspx), a moving and storage company, teamed up with Great Lakes Credit Union and WLS Radio to collect donated books during a four-week “Stack the Books Drive” for Open Books, a 501(c)3 nonprofit that provides community programs and a bookstore to promote literacy for grades K - 12. The book drive runs Sept. 16 – Oct. 13 at various Great Lakes Credit Union locations.

During the Stack the Books Drive, PODS^® containers will serve as collection points for donors to drop off new or used books, with a goal to collect more than 1,000 books. Once the drive is complete, PODS will transport the donations to Open Books, helping save the charity thousands of dollars in moving and storage logistics costs.

The PODS container will make its way to the following Great Lakes Credit Union locations:

Monday, Sept. 16 – Sunday, Sept. 22: 351 E. Illinois Route 173, Antioch, Ill.
Monday, Sept. 23 – Sunday, Sept. 29: 3209 N. Lewis Ave., Waukegan, Ill.
Monday, Sept. 30 – Sunday, October 6: 1519 N. Naper Blvd., Naperville, Ill.
Monday, Oct. 7 – Sunday, October 13: 18130 Pulaski Road, Country Hills Club, Ill.

“At PODS, we make it our priority to give back to the community and want to influence others to do the same. The partnership with Great Lakes Credit Union will help us collect enough books to increase learning in students,” said Brett Schnitzius, Regional Director for PODS of Chicago. “We are proud to be providing our moving and storage services so that every young person can improve their reading skills.”

According to Central Connecticut State University’s “America’s Most Literate Cities” study, Chicago ranks 31st for literacy. The U.S. Department of Education also reports that 79 percent of 8^th graders in Chicago Public Schools are not grade-level proficient in reading. Currently, Open Books helps more than 4,900 students achieve reading success.

“It is our goal to help students across the city be successful leaders in the future,” said Stacy Ratner, founder of Open Books. “We thank PODS for donating the use of their PODS containers so that we can continue transforming young minds through reading and the power of books.”

For more information about the literacy book drive, visit the PODS of Chicago Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/PODSChicago .

About PODS Enterprises, Inc.

Founded in 1998, PODS currently provides moving and storage services to a population of more than 250 million consumers and businesses, in 48 U.S. states, Canada, Australia and the UK, through its company-owned and independent franchise network. To date, the PODS network has completed more than 400,000 long-distance relocations, exceeded 2.0 million deliveries and has over 145,000 PODS^® containers in service.

About Great Lakes Union Credit Union

In 1938, Great Lakes Credit Union (GLCU) was organized by William E. Elliott, President of Local 167 - National Federation of Federal Employees, with an uncomplicated concept: to create a financial institution which put the best interests of the members first, allowing civil servants to borrow money at reasonable rates, and have a safe place to save for the future. When GLCU was established, there was no financial institution in the local area and in those early days, Civil Servants were paid in cash. GLCU’s Treasurer set up a desk at the end of the government Disbursing Officer’s pay line to collect deposits and loan payments from members. The day’s receipts were then placed in a tin Cash Box.

Moving through the years, annual membership and asset growth came fast due to GLCU’s visionary Board of Directors and dedicated forward thinking employees. The development and integration of new innovative products and services were added to focus on the financial needs of people. Customer service remained GLCU’s top priority.

Today, GLCU carries on the tradition of developing those innovative products and services often saving you money with low interest rate loans, high dividend checking and lower service fees than most competing financial institutions. At GLCU you will find a variety of financial services that make your money work as hard as you do. And convenience is just as important as service and saving you money. We put “you” first and want to make your GLCU experience a seamless, service oriented relationship.

About Open Books Ltd.

Open Books is a nonprofit social venture that operates an extraordinary bookstore, provides community programs, and mobilizes passionate volunteers to promote literacy in Chicago and beyond.