Some of us might find it hard to believe, but there are homes that have no books at all in them. I have never lived in such a home. My father, a research chemist who founded a company to make adhesives to bind books, would volunteer to do pricing for the local book sale, undoubtedly a key factor in what the three bags of books we donated always seemed to turn into six bags coming home.
It’s been shown that kids whose families aren’t so fortunate tend to be less academically successful. That’s where Cleveland’s Kids’ Book Bank comes in. It distributes about 60,000 high-quality children’s books each month to low-income and at-risk families through partner organizations such as social service agencies, schools, food banks, churches, community centers and day cares.
With many such organizations closed, the Kids’ Book Bank is looking for new avenues to distribute their donated books. They’ve got the books; they just need some new partners.
“Every day that our children are out of school, they are falling further behind. In a typical summer, low-income children lose 2-3 months of reading achievement while out of school,” they remind us. “This lengthy pandemic, with schools closed for months, has made the situation exponentially more dire.”
If you can help contact info@kidsbookbang.org or go to kidsbookbank.org for more information. They can even deliver!