New program trades books for smoothies at FRESH Healthy Café

KBSI FOX23 News at 9 p.m.

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo., (KBSI) — FRESH Healthy Café is launching a new program aimed at encouraging children to read by rewarding them with smoothies.

The café’s Reading Rewards Program allows students to log the books they read on a special bookmark. For every 10 books completed, they can redeem the bookmark for a free smoothie at either the N. Kingshighway or Saint Francis Medical Center locations.

The reward is valid for any smoothie on the menu, including flavors such as Pineapple Paradise, Strawberry Banana Supreme, Protein Power and Acai Mega Berry. Students can continue to participate each quarter with no limit on how many books they read.

“Developing a love of reading is so important, so we figured we could sweeten the deal a bit with a free smoothie,” said Rick Hetzel, owner of FRESH Healthy Café Missouri. “Because we make our smoothies with pure ingredients, they not only taste like a delicious reward but also provide extra energy for kids to power through their day.”

The program has launched at Central Junior High in Cape Girardeau and East Elementary in Jackson, with opportunities for additional schools to participate.

FRESH, which also partners with Southeast Missouri State University athletics and supports student athletics through its NIL program, remains the official “Healthy Restaurant Partner” of SEMO Athletics.

More information about FRESH can be found at A Fast-Growing Healthy Food Franchise Opportunity.