Books with color leadership

Lawrence Gordon is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Books with Color, Inc and Founder of Books By LG, which exists to inspire dads, uncles, grandfathers, & male role models everywhere to read more books to children as a way of building bonds, inspiring dreams, and to be intentional about story time..  This passionate father of 4  believes is the author of Unicorn Dreams and The Dad, the Bully and the Orange Ball. He wrote these particular books because he saw his own children weren't reflected in the children's books that were available in mass market on these particular topics--which little did he know would become a precursor for Books with Color, Inc.. Gordon has worked in the non-profit space for 12 years, playing a critical role in the work of Hope Haven, a foundation of recovery which aims to provide life skills for chemically dependent adults and families within a supportive residential environment leading to independence

Kristina Cruise is the President and Co-Founder of Books with Color, Inc. Cruise is a passionate children's advocate and award-winning  philanthropist who has worked hands-on in the early literacy space for more than a decade. She is also the Founder of Living Libraries, and author of the bilingual The LiLi Key series. The LiLi Key Cruise's passion for literacy ignited in 2008 when she saw a little girl in line at a food pantry at a story she was covering for a television station. That child  had never touched a book before, which opened her eyes to the concept of book deserts. She took the passion created by her inquiry and used it to create Promising Pages, a 501(c)(3) non-profit which up-cycles tens of thousands a books a month to children living in Charlotte's book deserts. Cruise grew Promising Pages for nearly a decade before leaving to pursue the greater shared vision to help all children thrive via books. 

Charlitta Hatch is a founding director of the Books with Color Inc. movement where she serves as Secretary. She is a problem solver, team builder and advocate with a passion for  solving racial injustice issues that plague our modern culture. She has brought her heart for service and mind for results to her professional consulting clients at Slalom, Accenture and IBM for 15 years to help businesses solve complex problems so they can provide better experiences to their employees and customers. Charlitta is a proud mother and  author of the Black Boy Joy series and Founder of the #Me3project movement.  She is a passionate advocate for women and children, and is always looking for opportunities to inspire, encourage, and support others to be the best they can be at home, work, and in the community. She is the current President of the Junior League of Charlotte.