Building Readers. Unlocking Possibilities.
We envision a future where every child can read, every family is food secure, and every neighborhood in Portsmouth has the foundation to thrive.
Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of Portsmouth is enrolling and going STRONG!
ChainBreakers has launched Dolly Parton's Imagination Library of Portsmouth, providing children ages 0–5 with free, high-quality books delivered directly to their homes.
Discover how this program expands early literacy access, strengthens school readiness, and helps shape long-term outcomes for our youngest learners, and sign your child up for their free monthly book.
ENROLLMENT IS NOW OPEN!
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Too many children fall behind in reading early, and once they do, catching up becomes harder each year.
ChainBreakers’ Reading Enrichment Program is our signature effort that works directly with Portsmouth's elementary school students, providing focused, small-group literacy support that strengthens reading skills, builds confidence, and helps children see themselves as "Superstar Readers".
During the 2025–2026 school year, we partnered with four Portsmouth elementary schools. In the 2026-27 school year, that number will increase to seven!
Each cohort delivers targeted reading instruction, encouragement, and consistent academic support, and it concludes with a student celebration and a parent workshop designed to reinforce learning at home.
Children leave the program more confident, more engaged, and better prepared for long-term academic success, while families gain tools to support literacy beyond the classroom.
With continued community support, this program helps ensure that more children learn to read, so they can read to learn.
Schedule for 2026-2027 School Year
COMING SOON
ChainBreakers, Inc. helps Portsmouth students strengthen their reading skills and confidence
Reading Early Changes the Entire Story for A Child
Children who aren’t reading proficiently by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school.
That’s why early literacy is at the center of our work.
ChainBreakers, Inc. is proud to partner with Mercy Chefs to provide hot meals to our neighborhood.
Nourish the Neighborhood helps us show up for families by making sure no one has to choose between feeding their children and focusing on what matters most.
Through trusted community partnerships, ChainBreakers provides consistent food support that helps ease food insufficiency while supporting children’s learning and well-being. In partnership with Mercy Chefs, we serve free, hot meals twice each month, and we provide meals for the children participating in our Reading Enrichment Program. These meals help create the conditions children need to focus, learn, and thrive.
To help families stretch further, ChainBreakers also partners with the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore to offer monthly grocery distributions, providing households with nutritious food they can rely on beyond meal events.
ChainBreakers exists because far too many children fall behind in reading for reasons that have nothing to do with intelligence—and everything to do with access and support.
When families are stretched thin, books don’t always make it into the home—not because parents don’t care, but because food, housing, and keeping the lights on come first. Those early gaps don’t stay small. They compound. And by the time a child is labeled “behind,” they’ve often been fighting an uphill battle for years.
That’s why our work is literacy-forward and family-centered. It's also why we’re proud to be an award-winning organization, recognized with the Empowering Scholars Award from Student Support Services of Portsmouth Public Schools.
We focus on three clear outcomes:
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Early access (birth–age 5): putting free, high-quality books in homes so children build language, confidence, and a love of reading from the very beginning.
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Reading intervention (K–6): delivering phonics-based support for striving readers during the years when foundational skills must click—or the gap widens.
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Family stability: increasing access to nutritious food so families have the breathing room to support success at home.
By pairing our literacy programs with consistent food support and strong community partnerships, we reduce the everyday pressures that derail learning and keep families stuck in survival mode.
We work alongside Portsmouth families to remove barriers, strengthen foundations, and make sure more children can read well, learn confidently, and step into a future that isn’t limited by hunger or low literacy.
From Award-Winning Educator to Literacy Champion...
Frances Knight Thompson has been part of ChainBreakers from the very beginning — and her passion for children and literacy has helped shape the organization into what it is today.
A career-long educator and counselor, "Pastor Frances" as she's affectionately known, has always believed that reading changes lives. But after watching "The Right to Read" and observing children she personally knew who were struggling to read, that belief turned into action. She didn’t wait for a program, a grant, or permission. She got to work.
What began by tutoring just two students, quickly grew. Drawing on decades of experience in education, Pastor Frances helped design and lead what is now ChainBreakers’ Reading Enrichment Program, which serves students across multiple schools in Portsmouth. Her leadership, visibility, and strong community relationships have played a key role in establishing ChainBreakers as a trusted, go-to resource for families and schools throughout the city.
Today, as Executive Director, Pastor Frances brings fire, excellence, and heart to our work. Her passion is infectious, grounded in the belief that every child deserves access to the opportunities reading creates.
