(S28) PT 5 - Helping Out

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Zach Crossley would partner with read across America as his commitment to charity. The player feels that the love of reading is necessary to have a successful career and life. Read across America allows Crossley to work with inner city schools in his hometown of Philadelphia. During the offseason Crossley can be found volunteering at elementary schools to help encourage reading. His favorite activity is actually reading to the youngest of children within the school especially when he can read his favorite picture book the Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carl. Crossley maintains a reading list for children of all ages on his website with recommendations such as the Chronicles of Narnia and the Red wall series. During the season Crossley can also be found organizing drives to help local libraries in San Jose. Zach spent much of his childhood checking out books from the library as his parents did not have much money to spend on them for him and his siblings. Zach sees raising funds for the library as his way of giving back and helping a new generation learn to love books as much as he does. Crossley plans to continue to participate in these programs as his career unfolds, and upon retirement he hopes to return to school in order to obtain a degree that would allow him to work in a library in his post football life.