Nine members of our chapter recently helped nearly 550 students at a local elementary school select a brand-new book to take home and keep.  For our second book fair of this school year, in a program called “Build a Child’s Library,” our members worked with the Reading Specialist and other administrators at the school to ensure that we provided an assortment of book titles that would suit the students’ reading levels and interests.  We purchased books from Scholastic in sufficient quantities to ensure that every student would have a wide variety of suitable books from which to choose.  After selecting their books, the students went to the signing tables where they wrote their names under the words “This Book Belongs to” and received a specially designed Book Mark.  The seriousness they devoted to this effort showed how much they appreciated having a new book that was theirs forever.

Our members always derive great satisfaction and joy when helping students select the perfect book because we can see the smiles on the students’ faces when they find books on topics they like.  This event was even more enjoyable because many students were not wearing masks, so their excitement was evident from their broad smiles.  The students expressed their gratitude in many ways, including hugs for our volunteers.  In addition, the school’s administrators provided lunch for our members as a token of their gratitude.

We can’t say who had the most fun at this event – the students, the school staff, or our members.  Perhaps that’s the best outcome we could imagine.