The Rey Foundation Among Others

There are a number of organizations that in some way or another honor the Reys or have rights to the Reys’ creative work.  Some of these include Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, WGBH Studios, Universal Studios, and the deGrummond Children’s Literature Collection at the University of Southern Mississippi.  The Combined Jewish Philanthropies in Boston also maintains a donor advised fund that honors the Reys.  There have been exhibits at the Boston Childrens Museum and the Jewish Museum  in New York. Local to New Hampshire we have the Curious George Cottage (the Rey’s former summer home), the Margret and H.A. Rey Center, and the Rey Foundation for a Sustainable Future.

The Reys were not only children’s book authors and illustrators, they were war refugees, early supporters of the civil rights movement, and advocates of social and environmental justice.  This is why Rey Foundation programs travel all over New England and give chalk talks to children in hospitals, address local issues of food security, and partner with The World is Just a Book Away, an organization that is working to build libraries in developing countries that have experienced natural or other disasters and that struggle with refugee situations. The Rey Foundation also seeks to recreate the experience of directly interacting with an author/illustrator and visiting a well-cared for garden as many us were able to do with Hans and Margret.

The Rey Foundation coordinates and collaborates with all of the above organizations and exhibits when possible.  I hope that people can enjoy the various organizations and exhibits that are based on the lives and work of these two incredible individuals.

Nat Scrimshaw

founding president and resident author/illustrator
The Rey Foundation