Books For Keeps

How You Can Help

2012-02-07T08:28:00.005-05:00

Thank you, everyone who's written asking how to help with our "13,000 books in 12 weeks" challenge. Here are the specifics:

We accept books for children of all ages, but our current critical need is for 13,000 current, popular books (both picture and "chapter" books) for children in Kindergarten - 5th grade. Our most requested titles are listed on the middle-left side of this web page.

Here's how you can help, no matter where you live:

1) Donate to our Deep Discount Purchase Fund
Use the "Donate" button on the top-right side of this Web page or mail a check to PO Box 49761, Athens, GA 30604. We're collecting funds to take advantage of deep discount purchase opportunities made possible by 2 large book providers.

2) Order from our wish lists
Amazon will ship books straight to us from our wish list. Locally, Avid Bookshop offers some of our wish list books starting at just $3.

3) Donate your books More Info
We have drop-off locations around Athens, as well as individuals in Macon and around metro-Atlanta who are collecting for us. The US Postal Service offers a discounted "Media Mail" rate
that is surprisingly affordable for shipping paperbacks.

4) Hold a book drive
It's as easy as putting a box in your garage or office, then sending an email or Facebook post to your neighbors, friends, or coworkers. You'll be surprised how much fun this is! Here's how.

5) Tell somebody
Tell your Facebook friends... place a notice in your church or neighborhood newsletter or email group.. Tweet about us... Think of all those books, gathering dust on shelves right now, that could find new homes with children in Athens! If only their current owners knew we needed them...

Here's a message you can cut and paste:

Books for Keeps is an Athens organization working to end "summer slide" in Athens. Summer slide is a reading achievement loss that occurs in children who don't read during the summer months, and it affects children from low-income families at a significantly disproportionate rate. Books for Keeps collects books year-round and distributes them to Clarke County schools where high percentages of students qualify for free/reduced lunches.

Books for Keeps has a critical need for current, popular books for children in Kindergarten - 5th grade. They committed to provide 12 books to every Clarke County school district elementary student attending a school where 90% or more of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. Five schools qualify for this May's program: Alps, Fowler, Stroud, Gaines & JJ Harris. Books for Keeps needs 13,000 more books to reach their goal of 12 books per child.

Details about how you can help them raise 13,000 books in 12 weeks are posted here.

Thanks everybody! If the initial response is any indication, we might actually make this goal. 13,000 current, popular books for kids in K-5, by May 1!

Contribute to our Deep-Discount Purchase Fund

2012-02-06T18:32:00.003-05:00

Scholastic Literacy Partnerships and FirstBook USA are making deeply-discounted books available to Books for Keeps. Titles we need range from $1-$3 each for NEW books!

We've been saving all year for this moment. We're assessing our inventory of books to figure out which books we'll need to purchase to round out our inventory in areas where donations are lagging.

For example, "shark books" were one of the top requests from 1st and 2nd graders last May. We'd hoped to have 500 or more in inventory this year, but we have < 50.

We were dreadfully short in the sports category last year, and the kids let us know it, too. They asked for basketball and football books - about current athletes. We have < 50 of those, too... for over 2,000 students.

While we assess our inventory, we're also assessing our bank account. Can you contribute to our Deep-Discount Purchase Fund? You'll make it that much more likely we're able to provide books that our most reluctant readers have asked for.

Mail your tax deductible check, made payable to Books for Keeps, to PO Box 49761, Athens, GA 30604. Or, use the "Donate" button at the top-right side of the page to donate online.

Thank you!

The Countdown Begins: 14,187 Books

2012-02-06T16:42:00.007-05:00

The free/reduced lunch statistics have been released (finally) and we know which schools we'll be serving this May: joining Alps, Fowler, and Stroud will be Gaines and JJ Harris! Both are large schools, and will more than double the number of students we reach. AND the number of books we'll need.

27,000, to be exact.

Last February, March and April were nail-biters around here. We were only 60% of the way towards our goal, and needed 6,000 books in 12 weeks. I thought it was impossible... 6,000 books was 4x more than we'd distributed the year before! But we did it.

Can we do it again?

We need 13,000 MORE books for kids in kindergarten - 5th grade... in just 12 short weeks. 13,000 usable books... meaning they're current, popular, and in very good condition. After all, if we want children to read during summer with no adult encouragement, we have to provide fun, appealing books they want to read. But that's more books than we distributed last May! Can we do it?

I'm nervous every year, but I'm not sure I can take it this time. 13,000 books in 12 weeks?

Books for Keeps needs your help, right now. We started with one person saying "I can do something about this" and grew as many more decided they could, too. Can you?

(New to Books for Keeps and not sure why we're doing this? Here's our story.)

Books for Keeps from Mt. Bethel UMC on Vimeo.

The US Postal Service's "Media Mail" rate makes it very affordable to mail paperback books. Send us the books your child has outgrown. Hold a book drive in your neighborhood or office (all it takes is an email or a Facebook post). Shop thrift stores, purchase books from our wish list, or donate funds to help us take advantage of deep-discount purchase opportunities.

I'm worried... maybe more than last year. But it's worth the effort. Athens was "upgraded" to #1 in poverty by the 2010 Census, and summer slide preys relentlessly on children from low-income families. Please help us stop it... now.

Looking back... looking forward

2012-01-03T14:39:00.010-05:00

Let me get this one thing out of the way before I start: I did a pretty poor job of keeping this blog updated in 2011. It's not for lack of interest, I assure you. Books for Keeps had the most amazing year, but with an exponential increase in books comes an exponential increase in work!

The rewards increased exponentially too. Seeing all those children... so excited to choose 12 books each... one volunteer called it a life-changing experience. I agree! Another favorite moment: meeting this woman and her daughter, who stopped by our booth at the Athens Farmer's Market.

This little girl received 12 books during our May distributions, and she read every one of them. Her mother wanted me to know (and gave me permission to share) that the family is on a severely limited income, and trips to the library are difficult. It gave her peace of mind to know her daughter had books of her own to read during the summer. She told me that she believes the books we gave her daughter will make a difference in her daughter's achievement.

Yes, meeting Bill Clinton was pretty amazing too, but could there be a more powerful motivation to keep working, even when the going gets tough around here? The children are the motivation that keeps us all going.

Books continue to pour in, and I'm reminded of a Facebook post from a woman regarding her children: "Dear God, thank you for these beautiful, abundant blessings, but please, now could you help me manage them?!"

Our book-raising abilities have reached a new level - one that requires an actual organization and infrastructure to support it. We are actively recruiting volunteers to take on organizational responsibilities, from accounting to marketing to warehouse operations. We're looking for candidates for our Board of Directors - people with rock-solid experience who can head up key areas of our board and organization. We need help. Lots of help.

And the day I knew was coming is finally here: we're going to have to focus on fund-raising. It costs money to process, store, and transport this volume of books, and we're vulnerable without funds to cover key aspects of our operation.

The book sale was fun! But book sales aren't going to cover what we'll need. Collecting books is just step 1. We have to be able to store them, and more importantly, we have to be able to get them to the children!

What if we can't find a truck company willing to donate delivery of the books to the schools? It would have cost about $400 last year; we'll be covering twice the schools this year! We've already out-paced our supply of free cardboard boxes; what if U-Line hadn't made a large donation of perfect boxes for us? What if Fire and Flavor hadn't donated warehouse space? What if Niolon Lumber hadn't donated the storage pallets we needed?

These nitty-gritty details keep me awake at night, because Athens kids pay the price if we drop the ball. I am so grateful to everyone helping us. In 2011, nearly every need we had was met - although often at the last minute - by someone who said "I am somebody. I can do something." It's quite an emotional roller coaster... to feel so incredibly vulnerable and worried, then so elated and grateful when a critical need is met at a critical moment.

2012 is going to be an interesting year at Books for Keeps. A year of reaching at least twice as many children as before... and a year of organizational growth to make this possible. If our history is any indication, you and our other supporters will rise to the challenge and help us place more books in more children's homes and END summer slide in Athens GA and beyond.

Thank you for your support in 2011. We distributed over 25,000 books! We now turn our thoughts to 2012, and wish you and your families a happy new year from Books for Keeps!

Volunteers needed!

2011-12-30T09:20:00.003-05:00

We've just posted 7 new book sorting dates on our Volunteer Spot calendar.

Over 25,000 books were donated in December, thanks to the Mt. Bethel book drive, the Bulldog book drive, and generous donors who dropped off books at City Salon or mailed them in from around the country. Wow!

Now we need help counting, inspecting, sorting and boxing them for our youth program. We can't do this without help! Our volunteers make our entire program possible. We have weekend and weekday shifts available, mornings and afternoons. Can you help?

The sort dates are listed below. Please sign up for a slot on our Volunteer Spot calendar (email address required) and we'll send you the details. Adults only, please.

Sat. Jan. 7: 1-4pm
Sun. Jan 8: 10am-1pm
Tue. Jan 10: 10am-1pm
Thu. Jan 12: 1pm-4pm
Wed. Jan. 18: 1pm-4pm
Sat. Jan. 21: 10am-1pm
Sun Jan. 22: 1-4pm

Thank you, Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church!

2011-12-14T13:13:00.007-05:00

The Mt. Bethel book drive is complete, and what an experience it was! We've never participated in a book drive this size. We got to try a lot of new things, and learned so much... in addition to collecting what we believe is over 20,000 books!

We'll be counting these books for weeks to come, but in the meantime, here are some book drive highlights.

It started with an idea. Cliff, Donna and Johnna thought BFK would be an ideal project for Mt. Bethel's "To the Least, To the Lost" program. They wanted to see how many books they could collect, AND hold volunteer sort days at the church. Minister Randy Mickler gave the green light, and the work started.

First Glen, a top-notch videographer, came to Athens to shoot a promotional video, which was shown at every Mt. Bethel service on the Sunday of our book drive kickoff.

Books for Keeps from Mt. Bethel UMC on Vimeo.

Mt. Bethel rented a POD, and donors dropped off books throughout the week. As you can see, things can get a little messy with a large book drive....

... so Cliff, Donna, and Johnna frequently unloaded, then RE-loaded the POD to free up space. Talk about a workout!

Then things got a little... scary. Picture this: Kay and I arrive at Mt. Bethel, ready to lead two days of volunteer sorting. We have no idea who, or how many will show up. And we see this: a giant POD, packed all the way to the ceiling... and it's located a good 100 yards from the building where we'll be sorting. These books must somehow make it from the POD, across the parking lot, and through two sets of doors to reach our sort rooms.

A group of 20 women and children gathered to help, and awaited instructions. I'm not gonna lie... I wanted to run far, far away!

There are no photos of these two days.... they were two of the most hectic, most challenging days of my BFK career. But they were also two of the most inspiring, most educational days, too. Volunteers arrived in a steady stream all day long, and after a call for help on the Mt. Bethel Facebook page, more strong backs arrived to help move this POD full of books. The generosity of the volunteers was amazing - to show up to sort books on the Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving!

Kay and I quickly realized there was no way we could finish in two days. We decided to focus on packing the adult books for the book sale. It took two whole days! Volunteers separated books into adult vs. children. Armed with lists of authors to pull for use in our high school program, volunteers sorted out the adult books we could use and boxed up the rest to save for the book sale. There are 3 pallets, just like this one, filled with books for our next book sale fundraiser.

That left the children's books. Volunteers separated picture books from chapter books, and put them into sturdy bins for protection. At the end of the two days, Rory and Cliff and the Mt. Bethel volunteers moved ALL the books back to the POD.

Mt. Bethel provided delivery of the books to Athens, which was a blessing all by itself. This sturdy group of guys unload the POD into the moving van. We didn't get a picture of the loaded van, but let me tell you - I swooned when it pulled up to the Fire and Flavor warehouse.

What happened next is a beautiful example of how things work out here at Books for Keeps, just when we need them to. It could have taken all day to unload that van! But no. Mt. Bethel sent 3 strong guys to help. Niolon Lumber donated a huge stack of storage pallets, and Fire and Flavor provided a forklift - and driver.

So... the three guys backed the van up to the loading dock, set the pallets right under the truck, and sat the bins on the pallets.

Jason picked up the pallets with the forklift and moved them into the warehouse. He wrapped the pallets full of book sale books and put them up on a high shelf, and neatly arranged the rest of the books in an out-of-the-way space.

Why am I so excited over a forklift and some pallets? Last year we moved every book, every box, using our arms and legs, a hand truck, or a cart. Thousands, and thousands of books... from the parking lot, up a step, and through 3 sets of doors! The Fire and Flavor warehouse is set up for just this sort of work, and it was exhilarating to see it in action.

How does one say thank you for an undertaking so large, involving so many people, with such an enormous impact? Donna, Cliff, Johnna, Glen, Rory and Jason - you are officially pronounced "BFK Heroes".

But to the many other Mt. Bethel folks who donated books, moved books, or helped in so many other ways: we may never know your names or what you did, but the children of Athens will benefit from your generosity. Thank you. Two little words... so much meaning.

The "Adult List"

2011-12-14T10:00:00.002-05:00

Do you have a shelf full of New York Times best-sellers? Oprah's Book Club favorites? Many of these books are perfect for our high school students! Think "The Help"... "Sarah's Key"... the "Game of Thrones" series... Jodi Picoult. These are books high school students want to - and will - read.

Media Specialists and a few Clarke Central teachers have offered to help us develop a list. For now, here's an example you can use as a guideline when considering donating books:

James Patterson - YES! His Alex Cross & Women's Murder Club series do feature psychopathic criminals, but they aren't explicitly, excessively sexual or violent.

Stieg Larsson - NO. His "Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" series features explicit rape, abuse, and mutilation of women.

We'd love to have your best-sellers to share with our high school students. The Media Specialists and teachers have offered to help us sort through them. If we receive titles we can't use, we will hold them for our next book sale.

Clear off your shelves and drop your books off at City Salon. We'll find new homes for your books, with students who would love to own them.

Pre-K Distributions are Underway!

2011-12-07T15:44:00.002-05:00

Books for Keeps delivered nearly 1,000 books for Pre-K students to four Athens elementary schools this week - just in time for the Christmas break. These fledgling students will all have books of their own to keep their minds active and learning over the Christmas holiday!

Susan, the Fowler Elementary media specialist, gave each Pre-K student a bag with his or her name on it, and spread the books out in the school media center. The children came through in groups of six and, with help from their teachers, chose the books they want to keep. Alps Pre-K students will receive their books over a more prolonged period, starting with one per child at the school's holiday party, then more to come when school resumes.

Stroud and JJ Harris schools just received their books today. We'll share their stories once they've put together their programs.

This is Books for Keeps' first Pre-K effort - it's so exciting! Thank you, everyone, who donated books.

UGA's Bulldog Book Drive

2011-12-01T08:04:00.019-05:00

The UGA Masters of Public Administration students are holding a faculty/staff/campus drive NOW through Monday, December 12th. Book drive captains are collecting books for children and young adults, from Pre-K - 12th grade, at the following locations (updated frequently).

All locations open Mon-Fri, 8am-6pm unless otherwise noted. Map of collection points

Baldwin Hall:
Corner of Baldwin & Thomas Streets
Bin is in Room 204, M-F 8am-5pm
Contact Vicky Wilkins.

Bank of America Building
110 East Clayton Street
Bin is in the Suite 300 elevator lobby.
Contact Monica Gaughan.

Business Services Building:
Bin is behind a secure door. Email Chris Wilkins to arrange a drop-off.

Carl Vinson Institute - Lucy Cobb Building
201 North Milledge
Contact Genevieve Vaida.

College of Education - Gwinnett Center
2530 Sever Road NW (Lawrenceville)
Bin is in main lobby in front of receptionist's desk.
Contact Jordan Smith.

College of Education - River's Crossing Annex
850 College Station Road
Bin is in the lobby across from the elevators.
Contact Jordan Smith.

College of Pharmacy
250 West Green Street (RC Wilson Building)
Bin is outside Suite 260-I.
Contact Brian Buck.

Coverdell Building
500 DW Brooks Drive
Bin is in Room 330-A
Contact Kim Klonowski.

Fanning Institute
1240 South Lumpkin Street
Contact Grace Bagwell.

Hodgson Oil Building
286 Oconee Street
Contact Charles Johnson.

Hoke Smith Building (Archway Partnership)
1225 Lumpkin Street
Contact Angel Jackson.

Joseph E. Brown Hall
Corner of South Lumpkin & Baldwin Streets
Bin is in the lobby.
Contact Peter O'Neill.

Moore College
108 Herty Drive
Contact Lauren Titus.

Tate Student Center
Bin is in Suite 325
Contact Don Reagin.

Terrell Hall - Admissions Office
210 South Jackson Street
Contact Patrick Winter.

It's not too late for your building or department to join this book drive! If you're interested in being a captain, contact Melaney Smith.

Two other student groups are busy collecting books brought from home by students returning from Thanksgiving break. Whatever It Takes UGA held a Greek competition (contact Anna for details) and First Book UGA held a Residence Hall competition (contact Alex for details).

We can't wait to see the books start pouring in!

Mt. Bethel UMC Book Drive Info

2011-11-10T18:40:00.004-05:00

UPDATE: Collection & Sorting Event Monday Nov. 21, 9am-2pm. Drop off your books and come inside to see Books for Keeps in action. 4385 Lower Roswell Road, Marietta
----

Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church in Marietta, GA is holding a book drive for the entire month of November, with a goal of raising 100,000 books for Books for Keeps. You do not have to be a member of Mt. Bethel church to donate books - all donors and volunteers are welcome!

Check out this video, courtesy of Mt. Bethel, which tells the Books for Keeps story.

Books for Keeps from Mt. Bethel UMC on Vimeo.

Here's how YOU can get involved, and help change a child's future.

Donate Your Books
Contact: Cliff Seal at cliff.seal@mtbethel.org

Books for Keeps needs fun, popular books in very good condition for children in Pre-K through 12th grade for its youth summer reading program. MBUMC is also collecting books of any kind for Books for Keeps' book sale fundraiser. Cookbooks, art books, and current fiction are especially popular. No encyclopedias or textbooks, please.

Bring your books to our "Collection Day" event Monday, Nov. 21st from 9am-2pm. Our founder, Melaney Smith, will be there sorting books with a crew of Mt. Bethel volunteers. Just go in the front door of the church and they'll point you to the Main Office.

For the rest of November, bring your books to the front office of Mt. Bethel Church, or, if you have a large load, leave your boxes of books in the Pod in the back parking lot, near the gym. If you will need help unloading, please contact Cliff at the email address above to arrange an appointment. 4385 Lower Roswell Road, Marietta.

No Books to Donate?
Contact: Donna Lachance - donna.lachance@mtbethel.org

1. Hold a book drive in your office or neighborhood, then bring the books to MBUMC. It's as easy as sending an email and sitting a box in your garage or office - and it's fun! MBUMC will provide verbiage and instructions.

2. Purchase books from the BFK Amazon wishlist. Purchases will be shipped directly to Books for Keeps.

3. Make a tax-deductible donation to the Books for Keeps "Wimpy Kid campaign", an effort to fund a deep-discount purchase opportunity for this rarely-donated, most-requested book.

4. Donate funds: MBUMC will accept funds on Books for Keeps' behalf (look for us in the vestibule after services each Sunday), or you can donate directly to Books for Keeps.

Volunteer
Contact: Cliff Seal at cliff.seal@mtbethel.org

1. Book Sorting:
November 21-22, 9am-2pm at the Mt. Bethel gym. Sign up for a shift on Volunteer Spot, or contact Cliff for more information.

2. Communications:
Help MBUMC spread the word about the book drive. MBUMC will provide messaging and/or brochures for volunteers to share via email, Facebook, or at other MBUMC events.

For other ways to help Books for Keeps, see Volunteering.

A Few Special Needs
Contact: Cliff Seal - cliff.seal@mtbethel.org

1. Stackable plastic storage bins: These bins will be used for Mt. Bethel's book sorting days, then donated to Books for Keeps for their permanent sorting operation. Need: 50

2. Folding tables: These tables will be used for Mt. Bethel's book sorting days, then will be donated to Books for Keeps for their permanent sorting operation. Need: 10 six-foot sturdy folding tables.

3. Packing supplies: Packing tape, box labels, scissors, box-cutters and Sharpies.

And now a word from our founder...

2011-11-08T11:19:00.002-05:00

Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church in Marietta created this video for a book drive, but gave us permission to share it with you. Straight from "The Dining Room" where it all started, here is our founder, Melaney Smith, telling the Books for Keeps story.

Books for Keeps from Mt. Bethel UMC on Vimeo.

New Deep-Discount Purchase Opportunities

2011-11-08T10:30:00.011-05:00

One critical success factor of our program is the ability to provide books that are so compelling children will pick them up during the summer with no encouragement from an adult.

We've identified deep-discount purchase opportunities for two of the students' top requests, but we can't take advantage of these opportunities without your help. $2,500 is a lot of money, but will provide 1,750 of our most-requested books. Please consider a tax-deductible donation; these opportunities won't last long.

Scary Stories! This book was especially popular with the hard-to-reach, 8-10 year-old crowd, and it's popular with middle school students, too. We are THRILLED to be able to purchase it for $1 per copy, and can use 1,000 of these.

Sharks! We were caught off guard in May by the demand from the younger crowd for books about sharks. We only had a few on hand, and are on a mission to remedy the problem.

We can purchase this shark book for $2 per copy, and can use 750 of these.

Our biggest challenge so far is finding a great, non-fiction basketball book featuring current athletes, for the 8-10 year olds. They're not interested in the heroes of yesterday; they want to see pictures and read stories about the athletes of today. Let us know if you find a great book at a great price.

The easiest fund-raiser EVER...

2011-11-03T07:52:00.004-04:00

Mirko Pasta on Baxter Street in Athens will donate 20% of the proceeds (for lunch OR dinner) to any customer who presents this coupon at checkout on Tuesday Nov. 8 or Wednesday Nov. 9. This could be huge for us!

The complimentary Tuscan bean dip and Caesar salad are personal favorites, and it's great to be able to choose the pasta and sauce separately, according to your mood. Check out the current menu.

Pull together a group of friends or coworkers for a lunch or dinner date right NOW... and share this coupon at work, online or any way you can. What an easy way to help!

Customer must present coupon at checkout.
1075 Baxter Street | 11:30am-9:00pm | www.mirkopasta.com

We have the books. Now we need the customers!

2011-10-19T06:29:00.006-04:00

Books for Keeps is relying entirely on word-of-mouth to generate customers for our book sale. Will you help us spread the word? It's so easy - here are a few options.

Post our event on your Facebook page:
1) Click here to go to our Facebook event.
2) At the top of the page, click Share.
3) Type a message of your own, or use this one: "Thousands of titles for adults and children, priced to sell. Proceeds will provide summer reading material for Athens youth."

Email your friends/coworkers/neighbors:
Cut & paste this message, or write one of your own.

Don't forget the Books for Keeps book sale this Friday-Sunday in Five Points, at 1658 South Lumpkin Street (next to Local Jam restaurant). They have thousands of titles for adults and children, all priced to sell. Proceeds will help Books for Keeps reach its goal of providing 82,044 books for summer reading to Clarke County School District elementary school students - 12 books per child!

Friday Oct 21: 11am-5pm
Saturday Oct 22: 9am-4pm
Sunday Oct 23: 1-3pm (bag sale)

www.booksforkeeps.org

Post our flyer - in a window, on a bulletin board, or online:
Just double-click the picture and save it to your computer. You can then print it, email it, or post it on Facebook.

Thank you for helping get the word out!

Book Sale!

2011-10-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

Books for Keeps collects books of every kind throughout the year, and many donors contribute books specifically for us to use for fundraising. We're selling thousands of books we can't use for our program, to generate funds for books we can use. We don't want to put these books back in storage for another year, so you can count on rock-bottom prices.

We'll also be selling Books for Keeps tote bags to raise funds for the student totes we'll need next May. Sponsorship spots are available on the back of the bag.

Where: 1658 South Lumpkin Street, in Five Points across from EarthFare

Donation Drop-Off Day: Saturday Oct. 15th, 9:00 - 12:00
Bring your books, whether for kids or adults, to 1658 South Lumpkin Street. We'll have volunteers on hand to unload your books and provide tax receipts.

Book Sale: October 21-23
Friday Oct. 21: 11am-5pm
Saturday Oct 22: 9am-4pm
Sunday Oct 23: 1-3pm (bag sale)
*CASH/CHECK ONLY*

Volunteer opportunities are listed here.

Come by and browse our books, or just say hello to Melaney and the Books for Keeps board of directors. For more information about the book sale, tote bag sponsorships, or volunteering, contact Melaney at givethembooks@gmail.com.

Please forward this post to a friend and help make our first fundraiser a success. Or, RSVP to our Facebook event and share with your friends.

A special thanks to Stiles Properties for donating the space for our sale.

Wimpy Kid Alert!

2011-10-16T15:25:00.001-04:00

We have an opportunity to buy a large quantity of Wimpy Kid books (issues 1-5) for #$3 each. (And that includes shipping!) I've never seen them for this price.

The Wimpy Kid series is by far the most-requested series by the students we serve. Children who hate to read will read these books over and over again. The books are so popular that they're rarely donated, so this purchase opportunity is significant for our program.

Can you contribute to the fund to help us purchase them? We need several thousand copies!

Donate via credit card or PayPal using the button at the top-right of this page. If you'd like to send a check, make it payable to Books for Keeps and send it to PO Box 49761, Athens GA, 30604. We'll send you a tax receipt at the end of the year.

Press Release

2011-10-16T12:52:00.000-04:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact:
Melaney Smith, Books for Keeps, Inc.
(404) 808-8625
givethembooks@gmail.com

Books for Keeps to Raise 82,044 Books for Athens Elementary Students

Athens, Ga. – Oct. 4, 2011 – Athens non-profit Books for Keeps announced today it will attempt to raise 82,044 books for Athens children by May 2012. “Our 2011 elementary school program provided 12,000 books to 1,000 children,” said Books for Keeps founder Melaney Smith. “We keep thinking about the thousands of kids we didn’t reach. We decided to go for it – let’s reach them all in 2012.”

To raise funds for this ambitious goal, Books for Keeps is holding a book sale October 21-23 at Stiles Properties, 1658 South Lumpkin Street, in Five Points next to Local Jam. “We’re selling the books we can’t use for our program to raise funds for the books we need,” said Smith. “We have thousands of books for adults and kids, and they’ll be priced to sell.” Donors are encouraged to bring books for the youth program or the book sale to Books for Keeps’ Drop-Off Day, Saturday October 15th from 9am-12pm at 1658 South Lumpkin Street.

Books for Keeps gives books to students in pre-K through 12th grade to prevent an academic achievement loss known as summer slide. “Research has shown that kids who don’t read during the summer often return to school lagging 2-3 months behind their classmates,” said UGA reading researcher and Books for Keeps board member Dr. Jennifer Graff. “The gap compounds every year, often affecting children from low-income families at an alarmingly disproportionate rate. By giving books directly to kids, we enable them to read all summer and hopefully mitigate summer slide.”

The organization is poised for success in 2012. Books for Keeps received its IRS certification as a public charity this summer, and was awarded a $5,000 grant from The Gammons Foundation to purchase books for the 2012 program. Fire and Flavor, an Athens gourmet grilling products company, has opened its warehouse to Books for Keeps. “Warehouse space was a big roadblock for them,” said Fire and Flavor owner Davis Knox. “We’re providing space to accommodate well over 100,000 books.”

Word about the Books for Keeps program is spreading beyond Athens. Smith was invited to represent Books for Keeps at Clinton Global Initiative’s CGI America conference in June, where she committed to reach every child in Clarke County School District elementary schools with 90% or more of students qualifying for free/reduced meals. Donors mail in books from around the world, and individuals, businesses and civic groups outside of Athens are holding book drives.

“82,044 books will allow us to provide 12 books to every child attending a Clarke County School District elementary school,” said Smith. “We’ll continue to provide books to middle and high school students too. It’s definitely an audacious goal, but I believe Athens will rally to help us.”

Learn more at www.booksforkeeps.org. For additional information or interviews, contact Melaney Smith at (404) 808-8625 or givethembooks@gmail.com.

***
About Books for Keeps: Books for Keeps started as one woman’s effort to help a child who loved to read but had no books at home. It grew into a grassroots movement to end summer slide in Athens by ensuring children have access to books during summer. Books for Keeps distributes books to Clarke County School District students ranging from pre-K through 12th grade. The elementary school program is based on a University of Florida study that found giving economically-disadvantaged elementary school children 12 high-interest books each at the beginning of summer had an impact on reading achievement statistically similar to attending summer school.

***
Editor's Note: Photo included of Books for Keeps founder Melaney Smith pictured with President Bill Clinton at the Clinton Global Initiative’s CGI America conference in June 2011. Smith was invited to attend the event that brought together individuals and organizations working to together to forge solutions for the world’s most pressing problems.

The Real Heroes

2011-10-15T19:25:00.000-04:00

Sherri Goggin wrote a wonderful piece about Books for Keeps in today's Athens Banner-Herald. Athens residents will hear about our Clinton Global Initiative pledge, our book sale, and our plans to end summer slide in Athens. It will move us forward in ways Facebook can't. Thank you Sherri!

The article was titled "Books for Keeps Founder a Real-Life Hero."

Wait - what?? When I think of Books for Keeps and all that we've accomplished, I think of all of YOU. The real heroes are the people who rallied to help our community. Instead of wondering "Why doesn't somebody DO something about this?" people all over the world said "I am somebody. I will do something about this." You amaze me every day.

But I've been instructed to be gracious, so I will. After all, I did say recently "I would put on a swimsuit and enter the Miss America contest if it would help tell the world about Books for Keeps."

Whitney just texted me: "Consider this your swimsuit."

I hate to be the bearer of bad news...

2011-10-14T17:37:00.004-04:00

... but I must share this news with you. PaperBackSwap.com contacted Kay and informed her that charities are not allowed to use PBS. We didn't know we were breaking any rules, but apparently we were. There are a few official PBS charities and we are not one of them. Kay tried her best, to no avail.

I'm heartbroken. PBS was our primary source of Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and it's a big blow. And I'm not gonna sugarcoat it - I'm mad. We've given them plenty of publicity in the last 18 months and I personally believe you should be allowed to give your points to whomever you choose.

But - the rules are the rules, and we must abide by them. So - we can no longer accept your PBS point donations. We can't even allow you to order books using your points and have them shipped directly to us. We are being allowed to use the rest of our existing points via my personal account, thank goodness.

BookMooch.com supports us and even donates points if we run too low, but there are few Wimpy Kids posted there.
(We love you, BookMooch!)

Thank you for your generosity in sharing points with us. We'll put on our thinkin' caps. Ideas welcome.

Donation Drop-Off Day

2011-10-05T13:00:00.004-04:00

We're holding a donation drop-off day Saturday Oct. 15th from 9am-12pm, in Five Points next to Local Jam (across from the pub); 1658 South Lumpkin Street. Volunteers will be on hand to help you unload your books and provide tax receipts.

Bring us everything you've got: kids books, cookbooks, novels, biographies, dictionaries... everything. We'll sort it on the spot, pull out what we can use for our K-12 program, and sell what we can't use at our book sale Oct 21-23.

AND - We have volunteers making house calls for the next 2 weeks! Email Melaney at givethembooks@gmail.com to schedule a pickup.

Please share this post with any Athens-area folks who might clean off their shelves for a good cause.

82,044 Books

2011-10-02T22:02:00.002-04:00

That's how many usable books it will take to reach every child attending an Athens-Clarke County elementary school in May 2012. 82,044. We'll still be collecting books for middle and high school students too. We've got the warehouse, now we need the books!

According to the 2010 Census, Athens' 39% poverty rate now ranks #1 in the nation for towns its size. Let's lay the groundwork for improving Athens' kids academic success. Let's give them books.

Check out our first-ever newsletter for more details.

Notice anything new?

2011-09-10T12:49:00.005-04:00

Check out the top-right side of the blog. We are finally able to accept donations via PayPal, credit or debit card!

We use donated funds to purchase the most-wanted, current books - books rarely donated at our book drives. Check this out:

We purchased a large quantity of Everybody Hates Chris at a rock-bottom price, and kids were so excited they chose to read during recess. This picture wasn't staged, folks; it moves me to tears. The kids read the book together, laughed out loud, and discussed as they read.

The right book matters. Help us make it happen.

He's baaaaaack!

2011-09-08T19:33:00.004-04:00

The Wimpy Kid is back, with a new release this November. It will immediately become our most-requested book, and Wimpy Kids are rarely donated in book drives.

We need this book. If we want kids - especially reluctant readers - to read on their own during summer with no encouragement, we must provide books they want to read. This is THE book they most want to read.

Please consider pre-ordering this book from our Amazon wish list. It'll be shipped straight to Books for Keeps when it's released. Tell your friends - I'm not exaggerating when I say we could easily give away 1,000 of these books. Hope you'll help.

Summer in Review

2011-08-18T15:45:00.014-04:00

Clearly Books for Keeps needs someone to take over our communications "department." I can't believe my last update was in June. So much is happening; let's just jump right in...

1. Clinton Global Initiative!!!

I was honored - beyond honored - to be invited to the Clinton Global Initiative's summer conference, CGI America. Our participation required a public commitment to do something new, or to significantly expand an existing program.

And what a commitment we made....

"In May of 2012 Books for Keeps will provide 12 high-interest books for summer reading to every elementary school student attending an Athens-Clarke County school where 90% or more of students qualifies for free/reduced meals. Books for Keeps will repeat this program for a minimum of three years at each qualifying school. By May of 2013 Books for Keeps will expand beyond Athens-Clarke County, beginning with a rural Georgia school and an inner-city Atlanta school, to reach children who might otherwise lack books for summer reading."

Remember how we added schools one at a time last year, as we collected more books? Not this year. We'll find out in October which schools hit the 90% mark, but based on last year's data we could be reaching 2,500 or more kids. Let me do the math: that's 30,000 books, compared to 12,000 this past May. And that doesn't even include middle and high school books; we'll continue collecting those too.

To miss this goal would mean (very) public humiliation, not to mention disappointing a former U.S. President. I hope you will help, any way you can.

2. Newsletter

Finally! We're starting an email newsletter to keep you informed, and to reach new people who haven't heard about us. You can sign up here. Now we need to find someone to write the newsletter. Baby steps...

3. New Digs

We survived a leaky roof and outlasted a 100+ degree summer with no air conditioning, only to outgrow our sort/storage rooms. Thanks to the generosity of the Knox family we are now sharing warehouse space with their gourmet foods company, Fire and Flavor. They have industrial shelving... pallets... a forklift! Not only does this save us from a near-crisis, it gives us an opportunity to learn some warehousing skills before we need them.

That's not all! A group of 20 students from University of Georgia's Masters of Public Administration Program showed up last Saturday and moved everything. They arrived early, had great attitudes, and worked so hard.

4. Campeau Family Foundation Grant

Books for Keeps received a $5,000 grant from the Robert Campeau Family Foundation to establish a book-purchasing fund. Now we can take advantage of deeply-discounted purchase opportunities, such as a recent First Book Clearinghouse sale where we purchased new books for $.35 each.

This is a huge step forward for Books for Keeps because we'll be able to fill gaps in our inventory as the year progresses. I never, ever want to tell another child "I'm so sorry, we don't have any shark/basketball/princess books." We'll have them this year!

5. Impact Award
Books for Keeps received one of the first-annual Impact Awards from the Clarke County School District. What a joy and an honor. What a powerful motivation to work harder. Without CCSD providing access to the kids, how would we reach them? Think about it: some parents cannot/will not enroll their kids in summer programs, take them to the library, or encourage reading. Books for Keeps is able to reach those children because CCSD allows us into their schools. Everyone from teachers to principals is involved. Thank you, CCSD!

That's our summer in a nutshell. Please help any way you can. You can start by sharing this post with others to help spread the word. There are books just sitting around, gathering dust in homes everywhere, simply because people haven't heard of us yet.

30,000 books... maybe more. Oh my. Just remember, Books for Keeps started with a simple thought: "I am someone, I can do something." So are you, and so can you. Give it some thought.

It's Official!!!

2011-06-11T14:11:00.005-04:00

We just received confirmation from the IRS that we are officially a public charity under section 501(c)(3). This means we can now accept tax-deductible financial donations, in addition to books.

Who wants to be our first donor?

Books for Keeps
PO Box 49761
Athens, GA 30604

Clinton Global Initiative !!!

2011-05-25T20:52:00.004-04:00

What happened to the break we were planning to take when we wrapped up our book distributions? Well, in May we looked 1,000 children in the eyes and promised we'd be back next year. So we are grabbing every opportunity that comes our way... books, books, books. There's simply no time to rest.

I've had trouble writing about my experience distributing books this year. How can a few paragraphs convey something so... something. Why has no word been invented for this? I do have a picture that inspires me to no end:

Books and joy. Maybe those words are enough.

Speaking of grabbing opportunities... this one found us: Books for Keeps has been invited to attend the Clinton Global Initiative's CGI America conference in Chicago this June. (Seriously.) What an amazing opportunity for Books for Keeps, and for our efforts to keep Athens kids reading during summer.

It'll take some work to get ready... we don't even have business cards! But we have books, a program based on solid research, a distribution model that works, and committed partners, donors, and volunteers. What a difference a year makes.

Right now we're working on the public commitment we'll make to Athens children as part of our participation in CGI America. Commitment, as in: we WILL do something new and measurable. Public, as in: humiliation if we don't! This past year's approach was "Can we do it? Let's wait and see." Not so for May of 2012.

This public commitment doesn't scare me. You know what does? Facing the kids at Alps, Fowler and Stroud if we don't have books for them again next year. I have complete faith in our Books for Keeps supporters, and Books for Keeps will need you more than ever this year. Thank you for getting us so far, so fast.

Melaney

PS: Ok, I'll admit what most of you probably already know: I am gobsmacked over this amazing honor and opportunity. Oh my gosh. To think it all started with one little girl.

Cathy's Story

2011-05-16T08:04:00.002-04:00

Cathy's involvement with Books for Keeps started with a short email: "I can help." What an understatement! There are several thousand books in happy new homes thanks to Cathy and her book-raising efforts, and her entire family of five volunteers for Books for Keeps. She took a day away from her job at Whatever It Takes (the organization providing our sort and storage rooms) to volunteer at our Alps book distribution. Here's Cathy's take on the day:
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Hearing a collective gasp rise out of each and every class of students after Melaney tells them they will select and take home 12 books each is the most wonderful, heart-filling moment of book distribution day. The children’s faces are amazing to watch as their jaws drop and they start hopping around with the anticipation of choosing and keeping their own books. I wish that everyone who has sent in books, made a donation, volunteered their time and energy to Books for Keeps could watch and experience how wonderful it is for those books to arrive where they are supposed to be: with the kids.

The kids truly, truly appreciate what you all have given to them.

Their sense of ownership with the books is immediate.

Their happiness and excitement about reading their books is palpable.

These kids know what they want to read and they are thrilled when they find the types of books they want on those tables.

I loved helping girls find princess books, helping boys find the much treasured joke books and animal books. The kids are awesome and each class that came through the doors on book distribution day was an absolute pleasure to serve.

All the work through the year of finding books in the community, moving those books, sorting them, counting, boxing, and storing them was worth it.

These kids are worth every bit of effort that goes into the Books For Keeps program. It was an absolute pleasure and privilege to be with those children, watch them pick their books, and know their futures will change. Thank you again, Melaney, for allowing me to help with this amazing work. I’m ready to start collecting books for May 2012!

Cathy Kemmerlin
Whatever It Takes staff
Books For Keeps friend

Kim's Story

2011-05-15T07:45:00.000-04:00

Kim K has been one of Books for Keeps' most faithful book sorters this year, and attended almost every elementary school book distribution. In fact, I had to force her to take a day of rest. Here is her Books for Keeps story, in her own words.
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Reading has always been a big part of my life, from the earliest days when my mom read to me. I still read every night before I go to bed, sometimes staying up late to finish a good story. What a joy I’d have missed out on if I’d not been exposed to reading at an early age!

I’m a scientist. I like facts, and here’s one: continual exposure to books and reading during summer helps kids stay at the top of their game. It’s why I started volunteering with Books for Keeps; they’re working to eliminate barriers standing in the way of every child’s access to books.

Helping sort books this past year was rewarding; I even find it relaxing.

Book distributions, however, are FUN! Over the last few days I was fortunate enough to volunteer at distributions at all three elementary schools. I learned firsthand what these kids WANT to read, what they are genuinely excited about, enough to make them drop video games or other distractions to exercise their minds.

Books about sports, princesses, fairies, sharks, Junie B. Jones, and Captain Underpants… the kids knew what they wanted, and I felt like a rock star every time I helped a child find just the right book.

My favorite highlights?

- A Fowler student yelling “thanks for the books!” from the window of her school bus while holding up her bag of books

- Three Stroud friends telling me their plans to pool their books to start their own library; they'd already figured out that with 12 books each, they had a combined 36 books to read this summer

- The young Alps girl who hugged me after I helped her find some American Girl books

- Learning on day two at Alps about a girl who stayed up all night reading – and finishing- some of her new books

My volunteer book sorting efforts will have new meaning now. The books are precious to these children, and selection means everything.

Long live the power of a good book. And long live Books for Keeps.

This is My Story and I'm Sticking To It

2011-05-11T18:05:00.002-04:00

Leigh and her entire family have been involved with Books for Keeps since our very first book distribution... before we even had a name. They've contributed everything from books and funds to lumber for shelving and aprons for this year's distributions. Was it worth a vacation day for Leigh to work one of our book distributions? She'll tell you herself.
-------------------

I have always wanted to be a Sea Turtle Lady. You know, live on a South Carolina beach, walking the shoreline in the early mornings searching for turtle tracks and checking the nests. But no more. Nope. Done. I am now a Books for Keeps Lady.

I have been around since the inception of Books for Keeps but due to my work schedule, usually offer financial support more so than time. Last Thursday though, I took a day away from the office and attended the Stroud Elementary school distribution.

Wow – all I can say is Wow.

Melaney had warned me that I might get emotional, that the children were amazing and how it had changed her life. It was all that and more. (I mean, I am almost giving up my dream of living on a low country beach…..)

I am not sure what impresses me more – the dedicated and receptive staff and teachers of Stroud, or the exuberance of a media specialist that renews and reminds me of why I have always loved the library. All of this before even the first child arrives through the door.

I donned a BFK apron – and was immediately transformed into, dare I say “rock star” status? I have never worn a Santa suit – but wow – I think I know the feeling now. Adoration - sweet unconditional adoration. The students had been advised of what was going to happen – and they were beyond excited. Small faces peeked through the windows and revealed wide eyes and bright smiles.

The generous donation from the Kenneth and Mildred Gammons Foundation allowed each student to receive a cotton tote bag to hold their books and this put their enthusiasm over the top. As one child announced “This is like shopping!”

Then they were off – perusing the tables, searching, finding, conversing, comparing. These children love books. They were thrilled to have choices. I got to participate in the search and don’t know if I could have been more excited to find an elusive Pokeman book for an eager fan if I had written it myself! And I have to tell you, the selection that numerous donors contributed did not disappoint. The quality and quantity of books donated is astounding!

After 12 selections were made, the children eagerly discussed their choices with the volunteers. The excitement in owning 12 new titles was palpable – but the love in the faces of these children and the anticipation of reading was the most motivating factor in my decision to say bye bye turtles.

I won’t wax poetic about the parallels between the importance of fostering literacy achievement to end summer slide and protecting an endangered species. But I will tell you that if you want a lot of bang for your buck and instant gratification in your own neighborhood, then come with me next year and put on a BFK apron. There are many opportunities to help and we need you. It’s not turtles, but I promise you will not be disappointed.

Going... going... GONE!

2011-05-11T09:51:00.004-04:00

Our 2011 book distributions are coming to a close. The Books for Keeps' shelves are empty! We're committed to reaching more schools next year, so we'll need exponentially more books, and a new facility, too. (Check out the top-right side of this page for ways you can help.)

Funding will be our new challenge this year. The kids asked over and over for more current, popular books than we typically get from our book drives. We hope to raise funds to purchase those books this year. And let's face it: operating on such a large scale costs money.

A perfect example: Books for Keeps was faced with delivering over 250 boxes of books to 4 different schools, and the cost to do so would have wiped out our bank account. I was truly beginning to fear a crisis.

Our sort and storage rooms were filled to capacity. The storage room shelves were groaning...

The sorting tables were groaning....

Two Men and a Truck of Athens rescued us with just 2 days to spare. It was an all-day event for David and Terrance, who should have been wearing Superman capes as far as I'm concerned. They delivered books to Alps....

They delivered books to Stroud...

They delivered books to Fowler...

They delivered books to Clarke Middle... and would you believe, they achieved 100% accuracy on getting each box to the right school? They even stacked the boxes by reading level so we'd have an easier time getting to the right books at the right time.

On behalf of everyone at Books for Keeps, and the kids who received the contents of 250 boxes of books: thank you Two Men and a Truck, for stepping in when we needed you most and safely delivering our precious cargo.

A Word from Our Master Moocher

2011-05-09T19:37:00.016-04:00

Many of you are familiar with Kay H, from Greenville, who manages our BookMooching activities and receives the majority of our mail-in book donations. What a blessing Kay has been to Books for Keeps! Here is her take on her first Books for Keeps distribution event.Thank you Kay!

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I was given the opportunity to help out with this year’s first distribution of books at Alps Road Elementary School. I’ve been requesting and receiving books for Books for Keeps from the BookMooch account, where over the last six months, over 3,000 books have been collected. It’s been fun, but a lot of work sometimes and the chance to see the next step in the process was exciting.

It was unbelievably rewarding. I wish that every one of you who has collected books for Books for Keeps, who has scoured thrift stores and begged books from friends and relatives, every one of you who has carefully packaged up and mailed books or donated points, could see how excited the kids were about getting to choose twelve books for themselves, to read and to keep.

Thank you all for the care you took to find books in good shape and to find the right books. It matters. The kids were so varied in their reactions; some leaped for the Captain Underpants or Goosebumps books, some were overwhelmed by the choice and needed someone to guide them carefully through selecting their books, and some knew exactly what they wanted and were willing to ask for help finding it.

After choosing their books, the kids would gather to count and compare their books, volunteers there to discuss why they had chosen the books they had. The kids were excited to show their friends what they had found and often their friends‘ reactions would make their own choices more valuable to them.

The experience was wonderful. It felt like the book fairs I have seen at my children’s school, but here every kid got to pick twelve books. Everyone was equally included, from the confident readers, to the many who were not. I hope that the excitement they felt will be carried home with their books and that those books will be a small step in preventing summer slide.

How to Donate Your Books

2011-05-08T16:25:00.007-04:00

Books for Keeps has a great need for current, popular books for children and young adults in Pre-K through 12th grade. We also accept books for grown-ups, for our book sale fundraiser. For more information, contact us at givethembooks@gmail.com.

Athens, Georgia Drop-off Locations: (Map)

City Salon & Spa: 100 Athens West Pkwy; Hours vary Mon-Sat
Stewart Clinic: 2425 West Broad Street; 9-5, Mon, Wed & Fri
Whatever It Takes: 440 Dearing Extension, HT Edwards Bldg. 9-4, Mon-Fri
UGA Campus*: Coverdell Bldg, 500 DW Brooks Dr, Room 330A. 8-6, Mon-Fri
*For large donations, contact Melaney in advance for a trunk-to-trunk transfer

U.S. Mail
The US Postal Service offers a special Media Mail rate that makes shipping books surprisingly affordable. (For example, it only costs about $4 to mail 30-40 paperback Junie B Jones books.) We recommend our mail-in donors focus on current, popular books with colorful covers for elementary school children. Books with old-fashioned covers or excessive wear and tear are not as popular with the students.

Mail your books to Books for Keeps, 116 Thornhill Circle, Athens GA 30607.

One down, three to go

2011-05-03T17:20:00.004-04:00

We distributed 12 books per child yesterday to every student in kindergarten through 2nd grades at Alps Elementary, and today we went back to do the same for every student in third through fifth grades.

It was fabulous. Thrilling. Exhausting. But mostly... motivating. Everyone there agreed: seeing those happy faces makes us want to try harder. Find more books, reach more kids. We learned a lot, took great notes, and when our feet stop hurting and our brains return to fully-functioning, we'll get busy sharing every detail with you.

For now, here are a few starter pictures. I'm working on media releases that will allow me to share pictures of the kids. Until then, here's what I can share:

First, Kay arrived with nearly 2,500 books in her car. She was only able to bring a teeny, tiny suitcase because her car was so full. Scamp supervised the unloading of the books.

Our Pi Beta Phi volunteers: what would we have done without them? They worked HARD, and were especially great at talking to the kids about specific books. Having them there really made a difference. Not just in workload; I mean the kids connected with them and it mattered. Thank you, Pi Phi girls!

The only picture I managed to snag of our Books for Keeps volunteers. Major omission! But here are Kay, Kim and Cathy, during the only 10-second period they stood still long enough for a photo. No such luck with Whitney, Jennifer and Melanie. You women are amazing and I'm so honored to work with you.

The "Wall 'O Books": These bags full of books would have been a distraction in the classroom. So after the kids chose their 12 books each, they hung their bags outside their classrooms on the coat racks. (Just think, we almost didn't have tote bags. Ginny, Laura, Whitney and the Gammons Foundation - YOU ROCK.)

I'll work on getting those media releases and posting more photos. And of course I'll share every detail... but it will surely be after the distributions are over (May 13th) and I've recovered from it all (May ???)

Here's the one thing I must tell you right now: two different volunteers overheard two different sets of teachers commenting to each other that our selection of books was amazing. YOU provided those books. Fun, colorful, interesting books in great condition... they truly were gifts. Thank you!

Donating Funds to Books for Keeps

2011-05-01T16:58:00.011-04:00

Send your tax deductible donation to Books for Keeps, PO Box 49761, Athens GA 30604 - OR -

Click button to donate online via PayPal or credit card.

Your donation will help us purchase our "most wanted" books - current, popular books that are rarely donated because kids want to hold onto them. $24 will buy enough books for one child's summer reading!

How to Hold a Books for Keeps Book Drive

2011-05-01T16:48:00.001-04:00

Holding a Books for Keeps book drive can be as simple as putting a box in your garage or office and sending an email to let folks know it's there. You'll be surprised how many books you get, but we're happy whether you collect 25 books or 2,500 books.

For larger book drives, we can help with communications and logistics if needed.

Regardless of size, we'll provide printable signs and logos, and messaging to include in an email, Facebook post, newsletter or other bulletin.

We hope you'll consider holding a book drive soon, whether large or small. Contact us at givethembooks@gmail.com.

Start Spreadin' the News....

2011-05-01T06:09:00.002-04:00

Book Giveaway Aims to Keep Kids Reading During Summer
- Athens Banner-Herald, May 11, 2011

This Organization Plays for Keeps
- Athens Patch, May 9, 2011

Books for Keeps to Give Out 12,000 Books to Clarke County Students
- Classic City Courier, April 26, 2011

Video: The Books for Keeps Program
- UGA Newsource, April 25, 2011

Forum: Books for Keeps Needs Books for Kids
- Athens Banner-Herald, October 17, 2010

The Editor's Desk: Books for Keeps
- Athens Banner-Herald, October 15, 2010

Giving the Kids Books: A Small Act of Kindness Starts a Community-Wide Movement
- BLVD, October 12, 2010

The Editor's Desk: Books for Keeps
- Athens Banner-Herald, October 7, 2010

Books for Keeps & Whatever It Takes Pair Up for a Great Fall Book Drive
- Beyond the Trestle, October 6, 2010

Reading Gifts Are Easy Way to Help Kids
- Athens Banner-Herald, September 12, 2010

Woman Moved to Collect Books for Children Who Have None
- Athens Banner-Herald, September 10, 2010

Book Delivery Day!

2011-04-28T06:08:00.002-04:00

Today Books for Keeps is delivering 17,487 books to 4 schools. Am I the only person having trouble grasping that this is real? 17,487 books. 4 schools. 1,600 kids.

Last week Books for Keeps was in a bit of a bind. We had absolutely no idea how we'd deliver the books and were running out of time. It's my fault; I was so focused on raising enough books, I never thought about how we'd deliver them. Last year I just put the books in my car.

As with every other near-crisis we've faced, the Books for Keeps Guardian Angel was on duty.

Two Men and a Truck has agreed to deliver ALL of the books. This morning. At 8:30. What a relief and a blessing. The sort room will sit empty for two whole days, til Kay arrives with 2,500 more books from our BookMoochers and out-of-state donors. I'll have to deliver those books myself, and I'm not complaining.

If you have time, please tell Two Men and a Truck what a wonderful thing they've done for Athens kids and Books for Keeps. You can post a comment on their Facebook page, or leave a message on their Web site.

Pictures coming soon....

Deja Vu

2011-04-19T18:21:00.003-04:00

The protective pad for my dining room table made a reappearance for the first time since Whatever It Takes provided a sort room for Books for Keeps. What a deja vu moment it was, standing in front of the table with a box of books at my feet.

I felt a brief urge to sit and reflect on the days when Books for Keeps was run out of my home and I sorted books all hours of the day. Then I remembered I had work to do, and got down to business.

Things are so crazy right now; some days I can't spare 20 minutes for the drive to/from the sort room. My car can't hold another box of books, so I'm sorting them at home and here they'll stay til distribution day.

There's so much to tell you; I feel guilty that I can't squeeze in time for more sharing. Books for Keeps supporters are amazing and I hope you feel the same as I do: the kids & the books come first. I'm keeping notes, though! Someday...

19,455 Books!

2011-04-18T15:34:00.003-04:00

We've had a last-minute surge in local donations, and Kay just sent me an updated count from Greenville. Are you sitting down? We have 19,455 books.

I'm stunned, excited, and humbled by the generosity of Books for Keeps donors. And like last year, faced with a dilemma: do I save the extra books for next year's program, or look for a last-minute opportunity to distribute them?

Kay will be bringing almost 2,000 books when she makes her trip to Athens on May 1st. 2,000 books! All shipped to her house in Greenville by generous book-lovers and "BookMoochers" around the world... just since February. Can you imagine how much time she spends opening the mail? Here in Athens, UGA students are rallying their classmates to bring books from home when they return from Easter weekend.

I really have no idea how many more books we'll get. I do know this: my to-do list is 3 full pages long and everything must be completed by May 1st in order for our distributions to run smoothly.

Yes folks, things are just as frantic as they were last year. I'm happy to report that it's a controlled chaos and we DO have a plan.... and 19,455 books. Somebody pinch me!

Here at Books for Keeps, sleep is optional for the next few weeks. I'll do my best to keep you posted.

Press Release - May 10th Media Invitation

2011-04-15T08:53:00.003-04:00

Below is a press release issued by the Clarke County School District, inviting media to the May 10th Books for Keeps book distribution. If you have media contacts who might be interested, we could certainly use your help getting the word out!

Friday, April 15, 2011

Writer/Contact: Anisa Sullivan Jimenez
706/546-7721, ext. 18271, jimenezan@clarke.k12.ga.us

Books for Keeps Contact:
Melaney Smith, givethembooks@gmail.com

Clarke County School District to Receive Over 16,000 Books From Books for Keeps

Athens, Ga. – Athens non-profit Books for Keeps is preparing to distribute over 16,000 books to students at Alps Road Elementary School, Fowler Drive Elementary School, Stroud Elementary School and Clarke Middle School in May. The program launched at Alps in 2009, and has now expanded to include several additional schools that will benefit from the local program.

“Books for Keeps started as an effort to help one little girl who loved to read, but didn’t own a single book. It quickly grew into a grassroots movement to end summer slide in Athens,” said Books for Keeps founder Melaney Smith.

Smith utilized a University of Tennessee study when designing the 2011 Books for Keeps program. The study found that giving economically-disadvantaged elementary school children 12 books at the beginning of summer had an impact on reading achievement comparable to attending summer school.

Books for Keeps will distribute 12 books per child to all elementary school students at Alps, Fowler Drive and Stroud Elementary Schools this May – a total of around 12,000 books. Media are invited to attend the May 10 book distribution event at Fowler Drive Elementary School. In addition, nearly 3,000 Clarke Middle School students will receive books. Also, Clarke Central High School already gave away nearly 1,000 Books for Keeps books to students in English Literature Classes.

“Melaney Smith shows that one person can make a real difference,” said Superintendent Philip Lanoue. “Her program embodies what it means for a community to come together to support its schools. We are deeply appreciative of all her efforts.”

Smith collected the books primarily from book drives and through used book donations. She has received donations from across the United States and Canada. In addition to the books, all elementary school students will receive a tote bag, awarded from a grant by the Kenneth and Mildred Gammons Foundation.

“To succeed, Books for Keeps must provide high interest books – the books kids most want to read and will read, with no encouragement from parents or teachers,” said Smith. “For this, we rely on the generosity of our local community and beyond to provide books that will help children cultivate a lifelong interest and enjoyment of reading.”

Books for Keeps works to improve reading achievement in children, by addressing causes related to the accessibility and appeal of reading material. The organization provides books and other reading material to children whose reading opportunities outside of school might otherwise be limited due to income, geography or other factors. Books for Keeps fosters a love of reading and encourages recreational reading by providing enjoyable reading material to develop and maintain reading skills that will benefit a child throughout his or her education. For more information, visit www.booksforkeeps.org.

With 21 schools and over 12,000 students, the Clarke County School District offers students both diversity and a culture of academic excellence. The district was recognized as Georgia’s top school district for closing the achievement gap. All elementary and middle schools made 2010 Adequate Yearly Progress, the state’s measure of achievement under No Child Left Behind. Both traditional high schools are ranked in the top 6% of public high schools nationwide by Newsweek magazine. For more information, visit www.clarke.k12.ga.us.
##

Check it out!

2011-04-13T16:54:00.002-04:00

I stopped by ShirtWorks to see how the printing of our tote bags is progressing. They look FABULOUS! The kids will be carrying their books home in style, don't you think?

We are so grateful to the Kenneth T. and Mildred S. Gammons Foundation for the grant that made these bags possible. The books will be transported safely home, and owning this bag will remind the kids to read, read, read.

Donating Points to Books for Keeps

2011-04-09T17:17:00.003-04:00

Books for Keeps ALWAYS need points. We're on BookMooch as "booksforkeeps".

We get some of our best books from BookMooch. If you have points to spare, please send some our way.

Don't know how? Ask Melaney.

No news is good news...

2011-03-30T17:26:00.002-04:00

I've probably started several posts with this same title, but it's fitting for the moment. Books for Keeps is officially slammed!

I hear from Kay in Greenville that BookMoochers are carrying us across the finish line. Whether it's donating books or points, or getting mooches in the mail quickly - it all makes a difference.

And our BookMooch "angels" are out in full force. For many of them, this is the 2nd year in a row they've helped us accomplish something that seemed truly impossible. I don't know how, but this group of 15 or so women can spread the word like nobody's business. I'm so grateful... words seem inadequate.

I feel certain we'll have enough books, but there's no time to celebrate. My thoughts and efforts have turned to how to distribute so many books in such a short period of time. Here's a quick glimpse into the mind-boggling details:

- We know the student counts by grade at each school, and we've forecasted the % of students in each grade who will read at each reading level. For example: some first graders are reading picture books, and some are reading chapter books. It matters! We have to have the right books for the right kids, or we fail.

- Next we'll flag boxes of books for each school. Of course none of our boxes have a consistent number of books in them... so we have to find the combination of boxes that comes closest to the quantity needed at each reading level at each school. Try doing that math while standing in a storage room.

- And let's not forget transporting the boxes to each school. Those boxes are heavy! And since storage space is nonexistent at the schools, the books have to be delivered last minute, which means a different day for each school. Yep.

- Distribution day is going to be very, very interesting. Controlled chaos, maybe? Think about it. We can't put all our books out at once. First: no space. Second: the last kids to come through would be choosing from leftovers. So... we have the kids coming in youngest to oldest, one class at a time, and we'll put out just enough books for each class, based on our estimate of reading level. But how many is "just enough"? Will we be able to locate the boxes we need in the 10 minute break between classes? We're prepared to adjust on the fly.

- We'll have volunteers on hand to help the kids select books. That's really the most important thing, isn't it? But when they're not helping kids, they'll be straightening the mess made by the previous class, while opening just the right boxes for the incoming class. Oh -and taking notes like crazy... this is our best chance to learn what we can do better.

One huge burden lifted: how the kids will get the books home. The Kenneth & Mildred Gammons Foundation awarded us a grant to purchase canvas tote bags for all 1,600 kids! The bags will be sturdy enough to survive a bus ride home, and they'll serve as a reminder to read, read, read over summer. And how festive! I'll post pictures when I have the bags.

So many details... that's just a preview.

I'm also working on our 501(c)(3) application, forming a tiny Board of Directors and getting them up to speed, establishing an accounting system, and trying to figure out how we might get some publicity. Yes, it's time to start thinking about next year and it's going to take some significant help to get to the next level.

Coming soon: the latest round of inspiring people who've stepped up to help. I wish I could bottle this overwhelming gratitude and sell it... it could easily become addictive. And I want to introduce you to our initial Board of Directors - a handful of committed folks I trust completely, on the ground here in Athens, who have been working so hard behind the scenes on longer-term issues.

For now, let me say again (and again and again) how very grateful and awestruck I am by what YOU have all made happen. Books for Keeps didn't even exist a year ago... and now we're preparing to distribute almost 20,000 books in a manner designed to improve kids' reading achievement without them even realizing it.

Keep the books coming... tell somebody new about Books for Keeps!

17,000 BOOKS !!!

2011-03-18T17:08:00.003-04:00

It's been a quiet week in Athens, so I've been counting, counting, counting. Here's what we've got:

5,426 Beginner (ex: Dr. Seuss, Little Golden Books)
4,028 Chapter Books, level 1 (grades 1-2)
3,497 Chapter books, level 2 (grades 3-5)
931 Chapter books, level 3 (advanced books, grade 5)
2,517 Middle/High school
606 Unsorted

I hope that adds up to 17,007... but I'm pretty tired after 8 hours of counting books so no guarantees!

The total doesn't include our books in Greenville. It's been quiet here, but over at Kay's house... totally different story. BookMoochers are burying her in an avalanche of books. Keep 'em coming.

It's Raining Books!

2011-03-14T07:23:00.000-04:00

You know what we really, really love here at Books for Keeps? When books pour in so fast we can hardly keep up. If I figured it correctly, donors from 5 countries and 17 states have jumped in to help by donating books, funds, or points - just in the last three weeks!

BookMoochers and Library Thingers around the world are doing their best to bury Kay in books over in Greenville. She'll be bringing the books to Athens just in time for our May book distributions.

Thank you, everyone who's sending books and/or making point deals that allow Kay to mooch even more: Yoana in AZ (Wimpy Kids!!!), Brenda in Maine (we appreciate the title suggestions, too), Kathleen in MN (good eye for what we need!), and Gerri in Canada (we needed those Goosebumps). I'm not sure if Peta and Michelle know each other (Peta's in the UK; Michelle's in Canada), but together they are so on top of what we need it feels like they're a tag-team. Thank you!

THANK YOU, BookMoochers: Nessa in French Polynesia, Jenny in the UK, Sandra in Canada, Marcy, Jennifer, Michelle & Kelsey in NY, "damaistriona", Melanie and Lizzy in MD, Merwyn, AC, Meg, Carla and Kerry in CA, Mitch and Briana in GA, Annie in AZ, Runa in VA, Mandi in IA, Nancy in WV, Jeremy in CT, Rebecca in NJ, "CD" in PA, Kat in IL, Krista in TX, Gabrielle in MA, and Michelle in NC. Thank you also to John, BookMooch Founder, for a generous point donation just when we needed it most.

Kay sees most of the mail-in action, but a few packages still show up at my house periodically and it makes my day. Thank you Mary in Reidsville GA, Carrie in New Ulm MN, Jan in Davis CA, and Sandra from Home Education Resource Emporium in Canada. I've been wowed by the selections you've sent and appreciate your continued support.

I'm thrilled to say thank you to ELF, a PaperBackSwap.com user in California. ELF donated some always-elusive PBS points, which we use exclusively for copies of a Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Thank you, ELF!

Thank you also to Stacy here in Athens, for books AND a good story. How often do you hear, while standing in line at the battery store, "Oh! I have books for you right outside in my trunk..."? I'm learning to carry boxes and bags everywhere I go. Thanks Stacy!

City Salon and Spa patrons continue to donate books. I rarely learn their names, but I appreciate every one of you. Thank you Jenny, Nelda & Melanie, for your recent donations. I'm heading back over there this week to pick up more books, and continue to be grateful to Shayne for making it possible.

And how about all our book drives! Whitney and Leigh delivered soooo many boxes of books from the Athens Academy book drive... let the counting begin. Lori is holding a book drive in her office building in Sandy Springs. Cathy from Whatever It Takes is coordinating a book drive at St. Oliver Plunkett church in Snellville. Student group Whatever It Takes - UGA is holding a campus book drive this month. Wow.

A special thank you to Sara in Peachtree City: we had an opportunity to take all the leftover books from a consignment sale, but no way to get the books. Thanks to Sara, we didn't miss out. She fetched them right up, with almost no notice. Thank you Sara!

Thank you also to Stephanie in Johns Creek, and Laura and Phyllis in Athens, who all alerted me to grant opportunities. Fund-raising is the challenge I'm dreading most, but to operate on this scale requires resources other than books. I'm so grateful for donors who are already supporting us this way. Thank you Lucy (our first donation from Australia!), Leigh, Taylor, Stacy, Amy, and Heather - we will carefully and thoughtfully put your donations to good use.

Finally - let's not forget volunteers. AmeriCorps volunteers will be helping us out in April as part of Global Youth Service Day, and Clarke County Leisure Services volunteers will be helping us in June and July as part of the Teens in Action program. Individuals are joining in to help at our May book distributions and working on a summer book sale fundraiser. Charles, our volunteer graphic designer, is churning out book collection bin signs. And I'm so, so grateful to the folks who volunteer to transport books to our sort room... in the past I've done it all myself and this makes a world of difference.

With help like this, it's easy to be optimistic. Just think about the kids who will receive our books. They have no idea what's coming.

Whether you contributed 1 point or 100, they count. Whether you donated $5 or $500, we'll use it wisely for the benefit of children who need books. Whether your books traveled 1 mile or 1,000 we will find homes for them in Athens.

The clock is ticking. Will we reach 18,000 books?

Volunteering with Books for Keeps

2011-03-09T17:20:00.009-05:00

Books for Keeps has the following volunteer opportunities:

Ongoing Opportunities

Communications
We need experienced marketing/communications professionals to help us write press releases, blog posts, newsletters and more.

Newsletter Technician
We need a volunteer experienced with HTML and/or MailChimp to create and send our monthly newsletter.

Attorney
We occasionally need corporate legal advice. This is a low-frequency volunteer opportunity that will make a big difference to our organization.

Book Pickup Volunteers
We need help picking up book donations in Athens and many other northeast Georgia towns. This is a low-frequency opportunity that requires the ability to lift boxes of books and either hold them in your home or drive them to our sort room.

Box Pickup Volunteers
Barnes & Noble will donate boxes provided we send someone to pick them up around 3pm each day. Can you adopt a day?

Book Inspection & Sorting
We hold book sorting days several times a year. To be notified of our next one, sign up for our Volunteer Opportunities newsletter. We can sometimes hold a private sorting session if your organization or group would like to work together.

Book Drive Assistance
We have several large book drives coming up, and always need people who can clear the collection bins during the drive and bring the books to our sort room.

Contact us at givethembooks@gmail.com if you'd like to get involved. You can also subscribe to our Volunteer Opportunities newsletter.

Thank you, IntelliGRACS Group!

2011-03-09T06:28:00.001-05:00

DID YOU KNOW: it costs $850 just to apply for IRS 501(c)(3) certification?

Yes, you read that correctly. $850!

Once again, Celia Baker and IntelliGRACS Group have come through for Books for Keeps. They're funding this application fee for us. We couldn't afford it otherwise.

Which reminded me... I never introduced you to Books for Keeps' new best friend. She was a gift from Celia and ItelliGRACS Group.

I called Celia from Harbor Freight to see if she'd donate funds to purchase tarps after our storage room roof leak. In true Celia style, she said "What else do you need that you're doing without?" I told her about the cart. Her reply: "BUY TWO."

There are 15+ bags/boxes of books crammed on this cart! Can you imagine how many trips it used to take to unload books from the parking lot? One box at a time, from the car, through 3 sets of doors, to our sort room.

Celia, what would Books for Keeps do without you? I thank you, my back thanks you, and so does every Books for Keeps donor who's ever navigated those three sets of doors with arms full of books. And your funding of our 501(c)(3) application is a gift that will keep on giving. Thank you.

Rocky Branch Elementary Book Drive

2011-03-08T07:24:00.005-05:00

Books for Keeps has a new group of supporters and they're probably our youngest yet. Welcome, Rocky Branch Elementary third-graders!

The entire third grade at Rocky Branch Elementary school in Oconee County, GA participated in a book drive for Books for Keeps and raised 372 books. The books included many much-needed picture books for our youngest readers, and I found a few Wimpy Kids hidden in there too.

These kids cleaned off their own bookshelves to share with others. Their generosity is truly an inspiration. They've promised to send along a list of their favorite books to help us maintain our wishlists.

Thank you, Rocky Branch Elementary third-graders! The books are a wonderful gift, and so are you.

High School!

2011-03-07T16:36:00.004-05:00

Two weeks ago a most extraordinary thing occurred: I went back to high school.

Not having a child of my own, my expectations were based solely on my high school experience, and let me be perfectly honest: I was expecting kids full of attitude who wouldn't give our books a second glance. Eye rolls, heavy sighs... surely you know what I mean. I was wrong, wrong, wrong.

What I found instead: kids with clear ideas about what they want to read and why, opinions about the books they've already read, and a willingness to try new things. What a joy!

I took about 600 books to Clarke Central High School here in Athens. Lindy and Nancy, Clarke Central's Media Specialists, set aside a portion of the library for the entire day and worked out a plan for 7 sophomore English Literature classes to receive books. We set the books up in the library and the classes came in, one at a time, for about 30 minutes each.

Try and picture it: 30ish kids at a time, sifting through tables full of books... discussing storylines with friends... making recommendations to classmates... sharing their opinions with me, the Media Specialists, the teachers, and each other. It was FABULOUS.

We set the books out on tables at random, unsorted, uncategorized. This strategy has worked well in elementary school because the younger kids need encouragement to consider books that aren't familiar to them. The high school students would have appreciated having the books separated into categories: fiction vs. non-fiction, classics vs. modern. If nothing else, we'll definitely separate the "Chick Lit" next time.

Vampire books were popular, but most of the kids who wanted to read the Twilight series already had. I boxed up quite a few of those to take to our middle school distribution. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series was a clear dud; I doubt a single copy was taken. Stephen King was a winner, especially with the boys.

For the girls, it was all about Jodi Picoult. After the first class came through I scrambled to find all the Picoult books and put them together. The girls flocked to the newly-established Picoult section and it was wonderful to hear them discussing their thoughts on the various plotlines.

Lively book discussions were a frequent occurrence! At one point, a group of students AND teachers were heatedly arguing over whether Barbara Kingsolver's "Poisonwood Bible" was worth reading. Those who'd read it either loved it or hated it. Twilight fans separated into "book vs. movie" camps, with book fans advising movie fans that the book contains much more insight into the characters, and movie fans wondering aloud if 600 pages was "worth it". Stephen King fans debated which books were the most nightmare-inducing vs. "just creepy".

Throughout the day students would mention a book they'd read and loved, and ask me to recommend a similar book. Thankfully, the English Lit teachers and Media Specialists were circulating among the students and helping them find something they'd like. Between now and next year, I'll be catching up on my high school reading so I can be more helpful! Some of the requests: "gang books", "make me cry", "drama and despair", "vampires!", "anything that's not a chick book", "something by a rapper". Now - how do I turn these into a wishlist?

The biggest surprise of the day (to me) was the interest in the classics. Old-fashioned covers and childhood classics like Nancy Drew and Little House on the Prairie have been rejected repeatedly by elementary school students. I thought the same would be true of high school students, so I sorted out much of the "old stuff" and left it behind at the sort room. I never expected anyone to ask me for F. Scott Fitzgerald. Big mistake, but (thankfully) correctable. We'll be delivering more books to Clarke Central between now and the end of the school year, so I'll add them back and send them along.

Distributing books to high school students is a lot more work than elementary school distributions. The kids have stronger opinions about what they want to read AND books compete with more demands on the students' time, their social lives, jobs, and of course TV and video games. Matching books to students is harder, especially with such a random inventory. With unlimited funding, I'd let the students order the books they want and enlist the help of researchers to determine the most effective number of books per student. Until that day comes, we'll continue to share all the books we collect and refine the program as we go.

I'm thrilled with Books for Keeps' first high school distribution, and the kids were clearly happy to have the books. Thank you, our wonderful donors, for making it possible.

One month later....

2011-03-07T14:52:00.002-05:00

It was almost a month ago that I posted my plea for help. We had 2 months left to collect 6,000 more books for our May distributions. I'm happy to report we've collected about 2,000 books so far, and there are at least 1,000 more en route from BookMoochers. We also have several book drives underway. We're almost there!

And let's face it: 18,000 books is an estimate of what's needed. If your child is going to find 12 books he/she wants to read, how many books will he/she reject in the process? We know we need MORE than 12 books per child if we want every child to find 12 books that appeal, but we don't really know how many more. Maybe 16,000 will do it, or maybe it will take 20,000. What I do know: we will Make It Work.

So where are all these books coming from?

They're coming from generous people all over the US and Canada - sometimes even the world - who are willing to mail their books to Athens. They're coming from frazzled parents who take the time to clean off their bookshelves and deliver boxes of books to our drop-off locations. And a small percentage are coming from eBay, thrift stores, yard sales, you name it.

Yes, we are in full-on book-seeking mode here at Books for Keeps. I guarantee you it's all I think about! Coordinating book drives... collecting books... sorting books... boxing books... wow.

In the minutes in between, I've been meeting with the three elementary schools we've chosen for distributions. I'm meeting with educators who know first-hand what sort of need is out there in the student population... people who will be tasked with remedying the effects of summer slide if we can't stop it. Maybe the best word to describe what I see is HOPE.

I've also been pulling together a Board of Directors, puzzling through the IRS 501(c)(3) application process, recruiting financial donors, writing my first grant application... possibly working harder than I ever have in my life.

It's worth it. Soooo worth it.

A Quick Update

2011-02-24T15:23:00.002-05:00

There's so much happening all at once that I go to bed physically exhausted and mentally drained every night. But in a good way!

Books are definitely pouring in, especially through the mail. People outside of Athens are rallying to get us through this last stretch and it boggles my mind. Our BookMooch points ran low and within 24 hours of asking for help, points started appearing, like magic, in our account. It's just... humbling.

I will get caught up; I will sit down and tell you all about it. Later. But I wanted you to know that 6,000 books in 2 months is starting to seem like an achievable goal. I hope to update our inventory count this weekend, and I'm working on evaluating the count we need by grade too.

I appreciate your patience, and assure you it's a Very Good Thing that I don't have time to write a proper post!

Thank you for sending in your books and for spreading the word.

Making the "Thank You" Rounds!

2011-02-16T16:40:00.001-05:00

Wow. I'm flipping through my notebook and that's the word that comes to mind as I review the past couple weeks: WOW.

I'm just going to jump right in.

The customers of City Salon & Spa continue to donate books, thanks in large part to Shayne McBride's never-ceasing effort to spread the word. Thank you all!

The Books for Keeps "Out of State Angels" are out in full force. I have to tell you, I get such a boost from these women. I feel like they're right here with me sorting books. So thank you, yet again, to Katherine in Kerrville TX; Heather in Yuma AZ; Donna in Mississauga Canada; Michelle in Kingston Canada; Jan in Davis CA; Peta in the UK; Carrie in New Ulm MN; Meg in CA; Sandra in Ontario Canada; Mary in Reidsville... all are sending books, donating funds, donating points, and/or proactively scouring thrift stores to find books on our wish lists. I hope I didn't forget anyone... you ladies have a special place in my heart.

BookMoochers continue to keep us flush with points, and as always their generosity is humbling. They give Books for Keeps a truly international base of supporters. Breaker and "annlchasek" in NY, Raoul in Canada, R&D in NE, Kath in OH, Emily and Kathleen in MN, Abigail in WI, Frank in MI, Robin in GA, Elizabeth in TX, Tania in France, Elizabeth in SC, Susan in CO, Renee in PA, Jeremy in CT, Sugar Creek Ranch in OR, and Laura in CA - thank you for the points! You're helping us more than you can imagine.

And speaking of BookMoochers: where would we be without Kay in Greenville SC? Ordering books, opening the packages, and acknowledging receipt make up one huge task when you're processing hundreds of packages a month. Kay is bringing a huge load of books this Friday and it's going to be a GREAT day. Thank you Kay!

My family and friends have jumped into the action too. Mom, Taylor, Leigh, Kelley, and Bobbie - thank you for your donations. Lori & Celia - thank you for charging rent in the form of books to your families over the holidays. Stephanie and Kim - thank you for continuing to collect books from Foster Care Support Foundation. All of you, your support means so much to me.

Folks right here in Athens are helping too, in big ways. Tim, Cathy, and the team from Whatever It Takes have donated books and offered all kinds of support... so good to have input from people who've done this before. Whitney and Leigh are planning our first-ever book sale, and that's a HUGE job. Jennifer donated another great load of pristine, wonderful books from the College of Education.

Finally, thank you to the many anonymous donors who've ordered from our Amazon list or left books at our sort room. I don't know who you are, but I appreciate you all the same.

My, what a lot of people have contributed to our efforts in just a few short weeks! My heartfelt apologies if I forgot a single one of you. You are all making a wonderful difference in Books for Keeps efforts. 6,000 books in 2 months seems like a cakewalk right now, thanks to all of you.

Inventory update coming after the weekend, if not sooner. It's been a little crazy!

Good News, Bad News

2011-02-09T17:10:00.002-05:00

Our May deadline for distributing books draws closer and closer, and it's an emotional roller-coaster around here.

Good News/Bad News #1:
The good news - I have cleared the backlog of books awaiting inspection in the sort room. What a relief! Every book has been logged and sorted into "Use" vs. "Can't Use". All that's left is to sort by age and box for storage.

The bad news - Donations have slowed down enough to allow me to catch up, and this really scares me. I'd rather be perpetually behind due to an overwhelming number of donations, wouldn't you?

Good News/Bad News #2:
The good news - the school district has chosen 3 schools to receive our books this May. I can't tell you the names until I meet with them. But it's exciting to know where the books will be going.

The bad news - we don't have enough books for the 3rd school. I wish I could shrug it off and say "well, we've accomplished a lot... maybe next year" but I simply can't do that. We need approximately 6,000 more books in the next 2 months.

Last May, I put out a call for help requesting 800 books in 12 days. You responded by drowning me in books; something like 1700 books in 12 days.

Can we pull off another miracle? Can we collect 6,000 usable children's books in 2 months? I really don't know. We've collected 12,000 books in 7 months, so this will certainly qualify as a miracle.

Please think hard about how you can help, even if you live outside Athens. A few ideas:

- Consider Media Mail: You can mail a 10 pound box of books for less than $6.00 in the continental US if you use the Media Mail rate at your post office. That's about 20 paperback Junie B Jones! Send us your books... your friends' books... your neighbors' books.

- Collect books for us: Place a box in your garage or at work, and email your neighbors/coworkers that you're collecting books. I can supply the text for an email, and a printable sign. If you're anywhere near the state of Georgia, I can make arrangements to get the books.

- Facebook: 1) Go to our Facebook page and click "Like" at the top of the page. Your friends will see it, and maybe they'll check us out. 2) Post a link to our "How You Can Help" page on your Facebook page. Tell your friends you support Books for Keeps and maybe they will, too.

- Email: Here's an article you can send to anybody... everybody... you know. Then they can forward it to their friends, and so on, and so on.

- Donate Funds: I have several sources of books, ranging from $.75 - $2.00 per book. What I don't have is unlimited funds to buy these books. Make your check payable to Family Connection, with Books for Keeps on the memo line, and mail to us at PO Box 49761, Athens, GA 30604.

6,000 books, 2 months. Can we we do it? Send me your ideas. givethembooks (at) gmail (dot) com

$500 and a pretty cool story

2011-02-03T10:40:00.002-05:00

Books for Keeps has been given $500 to spend at the First Book Marketplace. I'm not sure I totally understand how it all happened, but it goes something like this:

Walmart donated money to First Book to give grants through a Readers to Leaders program. First Book awarded a grant to Family Connection/Communities in Schools here in Athens. FC/CIS made the grant available to Whatever It Takes. Whatever It Takes made the grant available to Books for Keeps.

However it happened, it means more books to help end summer slide. I'll evaluate our inventory and see where it needs help, then I'll enlist help from a media specialist to choose the perfect books.

Thank you to... well... everybody involved! Tim and Whatever It Takes have been so good to Books for Keeps. They provide our sort room, collect tax-deductible donations on our behalf, and help in so many more ways.

I love days like today, when gratitude kicks the clutter out of my brain and helps me realize just how far we've come. Pass it on.

A break in the paperwork

2011-02-03T10:00:00.004-05:00

I took a break from paperwork and headed out to pick up a nice load of books from a new donor.

Country Inn and Suites has a "Read It & Return" program for its guests. There's a small library of books in many locations, and guests are free to take a book. If they don't finish it during their stay, they can return it to any other location.

The books are replenished from time to time and shelves get too full. The Country Inn and Suites here in Athens donated their excess to Books for Keeps. Some of the books are brand new! Thank you Zach and the Athens Country Inn and Suites.

Waiting for me back at home: a shipment of books from Donna in Mississauga Canada. Donna is one of our early BookMooch supporters. Not only is she willing to ship books from Canada, she also gives us a spectacular point discount on BookMooch. You're awesome, Donna!

Keep the books coming... tell people about Books for Keeps.

Getting down to business

2011-02-01T11:27:00.002-05:00

Our incorporation, and future (fingers crossed!) 501(c)(3) certification bring with them some of the most head-spinning details and requirements. Officers, by-laws, tax forms, fine print... the dotting of many "I"s and the crossing of many "T"s. And it all must be done exactly right, just so.

I've been at it for three hours. My mind is boggled. My eyes are crossing. And the magnitude of what I'm undertaking is starting to sink in. Incorporating is easy! Proving to the IRS that you are a legitimate charity is most definitely not.

Oh, how I wish I could zip over to the sort room and spend the day sorting books!

Chris and Dana in Dacula, GA held a neighborhood book drive last May during the "800 books in 12 days" campaign. I'm thrilled to have received more books yesterday. Thank you, Chris and Dana, for continuing to support Books for Keeps!

Thanks also to Carol and Jane here in Athens, for delivering a large number of books to the sort room while I was out of town. I haven't gone through them yet, but I saw some great titles. Thank you!

I also heard yesterday about another donation of books from JoBeth and Jennifer at UGA. I can't wait to see the books; the last batch were new books in pristine condition and they were so fun to sort. Thank you JoBeth and Jennifer! And thank you Cathy, for making all the arrangements and picking up the books.

Finally, thank you to the anonymous donor(s) who left many boxes of books in our lobby while I was out of town. It's a great feeling to arrive at the sort room on a Monday morning and discover boxes of books waiting for me.

Thank you, BookMooch users!

2011-01-27T14:28:00.004-05:00

Kay, our volunteer in South Carolina who handles all Books for Keeps "bookmooching", has been working hard to make sure we don't run out of points. Once again, I'm blown away by the generosity of BookMooch users all over the world, using points to make a difference right here in Athens.

BookMooch is one of our best sources of books because we get to choose the books we know kids will love, and they arrive in good condition with very little sorting required. And BookMoochers hold a special place in my heart because they provided much of the momentum that got Books for Keeps started.

I mentioned a few of our point donors in a post last week, but there are some new names this time: Lauren in South Carolina, Val in California, Sheena in Arkansas, Elizabeth in Canada, Andrea in Spain, and Gail in New Hampshire - thank you!

And I'm thrilled when I see the names of some of our earliest supporters too: Jan in Davis, CA, Peta & Heather in the UK, Donna in Canada... what would we do without you? Thank you again and again and again.

Kay will be busy mooching books with this new influx of points... can't wait to see what we get.

11,000 books, and still counting...

2011-01-27T13:54:00.003-05:00

The tally is up to 11,426 after Saturday's volunteer sort day, and there are still books waiting to be counted. That's 11,426 books that have been inspected, sorted by age, and boxed for distribution in May.

Thank you Kim, Cathy, Aspen, Morgan & Leigh! Your help made a world of difference in slogging through the backlog of books waiting for inspection. And thank you Bayne, for dismantling and moving the book shelves out of harm's way, and rigging a tarp system only an engineer could conceive.

Our books are temporarily safe from future roof leaks, and I'm looking for a new space. We're completely out of storage space and we've outgrown the sort room too. What a wonderful, welcome problem to have! Of course I have no ideas (or funds) for how to solve it, but I trust our needs will be met in some way I haven't thought of yet.

We don't count the adult books as we box them, but I'd guess there are 7,000-10,000 of those too. Whitney, Leigh and Cindy are organizing a book sale, and I'm so hopeful it'll be complete in time for me to purchase books for the May distribution. I'm especially thankful that these women are handling everything. All I have to do is show up and sell books. Thank you!

In other news: we're a registered non-profit corporation in Georgia; thank you Celia and IntelliGRACS Group for covering the cost! This means we can file for 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, making us eligible for tax deductible contributions, grants, etc. It's so close I can almost taste it, but it's going to take a while.

I met two wonderful women from Girl Scouts of America, Christina and Jessica, when they came by to drop off books from a December book drive. I took the opportunity to pick their brains about what kids like to read and got some great recommendations. Thank you Christina, Jessica, and the Girl Scouts!

And another shout out to Shayne and City Salon & Spa here in Athens: they continue to serve as a drop-off location for us, and Shayne is forever toting books around in her car for us. We got more great books last week and I appreciate the ongoing support.

Finally - an impromptu trip to Atlanta netted hundreds of great books from two Goodwill stores. Talk about fun! Sadly, the Books for Keeps thrift store fund is completely tapped out. Please help spread the word about Books for Keeps, to help us increase our support. I buy books at Goodwill for $.75 each, so a little goes a long way, and donations are tax deductible if made through our sponsor, Family Connection. Here are instructions for donating.

Overall it was a really good week for Books for Keeps. Please keep the books coming!

Ten. Thousand. Books.

2011-01-19T16:43:00.002-05:00

I make a note in my little Books for Keeps notebook every time I seal up another box of inspected/approved books in the storage room, but it's been a while since I sat down and added up the official inventory count. Til today.

10,113 books!

Inspected, sorted by reading level, and approved for distribution to kids in grades K-12.

And we haven't finished counting. The sort room is full of books just waiting for the next volunteer sort day.

I know, I know, we need a lot more, but I'm taking a moment to celebrate and say THANK YOU to everyone who's helped us reach this point. Book donors nationwide, financial supporters, volunteers of every kind - thank you. I wish there was a way to add an exponential degree to a thank you; the two little words don't seem big enough.

Dreary Day, Delightful Deliveries

2011-01-18T21:10:00.002-05:00

The sort room roof has been patched again, but based on the age of the roof it's bound to leak again so the tarps will remain in place until we find a new space. It's dark, dreary and raining, but our books are safe.

Thank you, Lindy at Clarke Central High School and Shawn at Clarke Middle School, for the option to store books at your schools. I wish it weren't necessary!

A couple of boxes o' books turn a dreary day bright, every time. Today I was thrilled to receive books from Carrie in New Ulm, MN and Katherine (again!) in Kerrville, TX. Thank you!

Yes, things have been a bit rough lately. But as I told my long-time friend Polly today: it's just an awkward stage of growth that's a blessing in disguise. We have more books, more ideas, more opportunities than we have people or money to follow up on them. I'll take that over the opposite problem any day.

I'd say Books for Keeps is like a pre-teen with braces right now: looking a little scrappy and learning from our mistakes, but on our way to a very, very bright future.

Good Day, Bad Day...

2011-01-17T14:05:00.003-05:00

Isn't it funny how a single day can bounce back and forth between being a great day and a really bad day?

The sort room roof leaked again. Again, no damage to any books. Again, purely a miracle considering how tight the space is, and I am truly thankful. But I'm also really bummed. Books for Keeps has nowhere else to go right now, and if I stop to find another facility & raise the funds to pay for it, I'll have to stop my current focus on getting as many books as possible for the May distribution. I just want to give books to kids... but suddenly I'm dealing with roofers, tarps, shelving units.... ugh.

As a result of the two roof leaks, my husband Bayne and I have moved thousands, (and I do mean thousands), of books in a short period, and we are both sore, grouchy, and completely over it. I haven't been successful in my attempts to recruit volunteers to help with the heavy lifting, so today I resorted to paying someone to finish what we couldn't.

So yeah, it's been a bad day. I'm down in the dumps, sore all over, and got very little sleep.

But enough complaining. I want to be truthful about what's going on, because many of you have been following Books for Keeps' story since the beginning. But I certainly don't want to drag everybody else down with me!

So let's take a quick peek at the bright side:

- 10,000 children's books sorted & categorized, plus thousands more completely untouched, just waiting to be inspected.... all covered with waterproof tarps just in time for the rain that's now pouring down. And 5,000-7,000 adult books we can sell to raise money, and again, thousands more waiting to be inspected.

- Celia & IntelliGRACS Group came to the rescue again, this time purchasing the tarps we needed. She also purchased 2 large moving carts that I'd been fantasizing about for months, and in just 24 hours they've already made a huge difference. Now I can load boxes of books onto the carts from my car and roll them into the sort room... instead of carrying every box, one at a time.

- BookMooch users & their generosity. Kay in Greenville SC is handling all of Books for Keeps' bookmooching activities and is truly a gift from God. It's a big job, choosing books, ordering books, opening boxes, tracking receipts, AND making sure we don't run out of points which is a job all by itself.

It was a definite pick-me-up to log in today and see the points donated so far this year: Beth in Pennsylvania, Tony in New York, Lynn in the U.K., Sandra in Canada, Bo in Georgia, Stephanie in West Virginia, Books for Schools & Classrooms, Jennifer in New York, Chris in Canada, Chip in New Jersey... I hope I didn't miss anyone. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for keeping our account flush with points. We will use them wisely!

- A surprise package from Katherine in Kerrville, TX. She's done everything from mooch books on our behalf to donating points to sending books. It makes me so happy to hear from our early supporters and know we still have your support. Thank you Katherine!

- And Donna in Canada, another frequent supporter: she emailed last week to let me know another box of books is on the way. She looks out for books we need in large quantities, and when she has a boxful, ships it here to Athens. Thank you Donna!

- Our first financial donation of 2011: I don't publish those names because I have no idea if it's acceptable to do so... but I am extremely grateful to G & M here in Athens. I know how to stretch a buck and I will make yours count.

I'm putting this Good Day/Bad Day to rest, and hoping that tomorrow will be better. I still believe Books for Keeps is meant to happen, watched from above, and positioned to make a difference in Athens' kids' lives. Some days it's just a little harder to remember than others.... Tomorrow I'll continue to work on roofing and water-prevention issues; in the meantime, I hope you'll tell somebody new about Books for Keeps and send them our way.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-13T13:08:00.003-05:00

2011 started with a Books for Keeps miracle. A hole in the roof led to a few collapsed ceiling tiles in our storage room. 15,000+ books at risk... but when the ceiling tiles collapsed, they fell at an angle that dumped water into the aisles, right between the wall-to-wall shelves of books.

10 books were damaged. TEN. It makes my knees weak just thinking about it. I kept my cool, surveying the damage, inspecting books, moving boxes out of harm's way. But when I realized only 10 books were damaged, I burst into tears. Truly these books are being watched over, protected for a mighty purpose.

The roof was repaired just in time for what's being called "Snowpocalypse" and "SnOMG" in Athens: 6-9 inches of show. Schools have been canceled 4 days in a row, the streets are still icy, and we southerners are going stir crazy.

I'm so thankful the roof is repaired. I'm so thankful only 10 books were damaged. I'm so thankful I have 15,000+ books to protect!

About those books: 10,000 of them are children's books to distribute this May. Another 5,000ish are adult books that have been donated along the way... I certainly never saw that coming! And so a book sale is in our future. Leigh and Whitney, two Athens volunteers, are heading up that effort. Hopefully it will provide some much-needed cash, so we can round out our inventory just in time for May.

Our first donation for 2011 came from Jan in Davis, CA, a frequent donor who sends boxes of Book Crossing books periodically. I'm so grateful to the women I consider our "Books for Keeps Angels"... a handful of women from all over the U.S. and Canada who ship books here to Athens, over and over again. These women gave Books for Keeps its start. If not for their generosity and enthusiasm, it's very likely there'd be no Books for Keeps. So it's fitting that one of them became our first donor of the new year. Thank you Jan!

Thank you also to the members of Christus Victor Lutheran church in Athens. Cathy dropped off a carload of books collected at their church book drive. Can't wait to see what's in those boxes!

Speaking of Cathy... Books for Keeps is starting to have some regulars here on the ground in Athens, hallelujah! Cathy is lining up church book drives; Asia and Kim are helping at the sort room; Leigh and Whitney are organizing the book sale; Lauren keeps us connected to community resources; Shayne keeps a steady stream of ideas coming our way and provides an injection of enthusiasm just when I need it most. I could keep going, but you might stop reading. I'm just so thankful for these helping hands (and brains!)

We're in the process of becoming an official nonprofit organization! I should receive our incorporation papers any day now. Next step: filing the IRS forms applying for 501(c)(3) status. The forms are intimidating to say the least, but thanks to Celia and Intellgracs Group, we have professional help, free of charge.

Books for Keeps will have 2 main challenges this year, and they're related: 1) fund-raising and 2) communications. It's hard to raise funds without some good communications help, but it's hard to get good communications help without funding! It's a vicious circle that makes my head spin.

As far as funding goes: we definitely need to purchase books to round out our inventory for the May distributions. That's a given. But it also takes money to pull off an operation of this size too. From the tarps I need to protect our books from another roof leak to the constant supply of packing tape to seal boxes of books for storage... it all costs money.

So I'm venturing into the world of grants and fund-raising. I'm very nervous about it. But for now, I'll have to stick with viral marketing as my only method for spreading the word about Books for Keeps. Which means... it's mission-critical that all of you tell people about us.

It's been a crazy 6 months so I took some time off at the end of the year. I won't stay away so long next time! But it seems like yesterday I posted a cry for help "I need 800 books in 12 days..." and many of YOU flooded my home with books from all over the country, making it possible for 400 kids in Athens to keep reading over the summer.

I still don't know how many kids we'll help this summer, it all depends on how many books come in over the next 3-4 months. I can't wait to see what happens!

Melaney

PS: If you're not already, follow the Books for Keeps story on Facebook and Twitter.

12 books or $24

2010-12-13T16:39:00.005-05:00

That's all it takes to immunize 1 child against summer slide. 12 books or $24.

Our 72,000 book goal just got a little easier (we hope): Books for Keeps was just approved as a Scholastic Literacy partner, which means we can buy new, popular books for $1-$2 each. The books the kids want most run closer to $2, which means for $24 we can buy approximately 12 current, popular books - and 1 more child will be less likely to fall prey to the summer slide in 2011.

Why 12 books? In the most recent study on preventing summer slide, children who were given 12 books each on the last day of school grew their achievement levels at a rate comparable to attending summer school. We're targeting 6,000 elementary school children, the majority of whom qualify for the free/reduced-fee lunch program, a poverty indicator.

Small numbers like that make our lofty goal seem more achievable. Can you send 12 books or $24? If so, you're blocking summer slide for 1 child here in Athens. Collect at your office, tell your friends and neighbors.

Send your books or donations to Books for Keeps at PO Box 49761 Athens, GA 30604. If you'd like your donation to be tax deductible, make your check payable to Family Connection and put Books for Keeps in the memo line. They'll earmark the funds for us, and we'll use it to buy books.

12 books or $24. Spread the word.

I know, it's been a while!

2010-12-11T12:44:00.002-05:00

Facebook, blog, Twitter... all silent for so long. My only defense (and it's a good one) is that I have been working around the clock to do anything & everything that might lead to 72,000 elementary school books by April 30th.

I'm happy to tell you that as time passes, Books for Keeps is developing a group of the most wonderful volunteers here on the ground in Athens. Committed, reliable, creative people who are taking on big responsibilities and making it possible for Books for Keeps to do more, more, more.

But the clock is ticking. Some days I think 72,000 books is a ridiculous goal, other days I think: Books for Keeps supporters have surprised me in the past...

The truth is, 72,000 books is the number we need regardless of whether people think we can reach it or not. Can you help?

Updated High School Wish List

2010-12-01T17:03:00.001-05:00

Thank you Lindy & Nancy at Clarke Central for this updated high school wish list!

Alexie, Sherman – The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian

Anderson, Laurie Halse – Catalyst; Prom; Speak; Twisted; Winter Girls

Barker, Clive – The Thief of Always

Blundell, Judy – What I saw and How I Lied

Booth, Coe – Kendra; Tyrell

Carter, Nikki – So For Real series

Chobosky, Stephen – The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Clare, Cassandra – Mortal Instrument series

Collins, Suzanne – Hunger Games series

Cooney, Caroline – any young adult novel

Cromier, Robert – Fade

Cross, Cecil – First Semester; Second Semester

Dessen, Sarah – any young adult novel

Divine, L – Drama High series

Doyle, Larry – I Love You Beth Cooper

Draper, Sharon – any “teen titles”, especially Jericho Trilogy or Hazelwood Trilogy

Duncan, Lois – any young adult novel (editions with newer covers only!)

Elkeles, Simone – Leaving Paradise; Return to Paradise; Perfect Chemistry; Rules of Attraction

Flake, Sharon – any young adult novel

Forman, Gail – If I Stay

Georgia Peach award winning books

Going, KL – King of Screwups

Haddon, Mark – The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

Johnson, Angela – First Part Last

Johnson, Luanne – Muchacho

Kimani Press TRU books for African American young adults

Lockhart, E – The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

Mead, Richelle – Vampire Academy series

Millner, Denne – Hotlanta series

Moore, Stephanie Perry – any young adult novel

Myer, Stephanie – Twilight series

Myers, Walter Dean – any young adult novel

Paolini, Christopher – Eragon series

Piccoult, Jodi – any adult title

Pfeffer, Susan Beth – Life as We Knew It series

Rosoff, Meg – How I Live

Ryan, Carrie – The Forest of Hands & Teeth series

Simone, Ni Ni – any young adult novel

Sitomer, Alan Lawrence – Hoopster; Hip-Hop High School; Homeboyz;

Sleator, William – Boy Who Couldn’t Die; Last Universe; House of Stairs

Sports biographies of current athletes or teams, esp. basketball & football

Van Diepen, Allison – any young adult novel

Volponi, Paul – any young adult novel

Westerfield, Scott – Uglies series; Midnighters series; Peeps series

YALSA “Reluctant Reader” recommendations

How many books are enough?

2010-11-30T17:30:00.005-05:00

It's not a rhetorical question. I'm really trying to figure it out. How many books are enough?

This summer, I thought 2,000 books would suffice. Yet here we are at 7,000+ books and I'm more frustrated than if we had NO books.

For better or worse, something happened to me over the last couple of months: I started to think big. My, what a double-edged sword it's been.

Some numbers: There are about 6,000 kids in Athens' public elementary schools. I have no way of knowing which kids are low-income and which are not. And I'm not sure it matters. The poverty rate is incredibly high here, but income is not the sole factor at play in whether or not a child has books at home. So Books for Keeps is targeting 6,000 kids. We don't have any other way to ensure we reach every child.

7,000 books for 6,000 kids... is that enough?

Here's the thing: I've mentioned Dr. Allington's study many, many times. The results were amazing... simply giving books to kids to take home for summer made such a difference. BUT: those kids were given 12 books each. So if my math is correct, we need 72,000 books to make a difference in every child's future.

So I think the answer to my question is 72,000. Yes, 72,000 books will be enough.

What will it take to collect & distribute 72,000 books? The truth is I'm stretched so thin I'm almost transparent. I don't know how I can even start to tackle this new goal. It's too much. But if that's all it takes to make a difference in these specific 6,000 kids' lives, shouldn't I at least try? Shouldn't WE at least try?

When you stop laughing, I hope you will join me in praying for a miracle, and then donate 5 minutes of your time to think "What can I do to help?" Think big. I'm not kidding, and I haven't lost my mind. I'm just telling you the truth, like I have since this whole thing started... this is keeping me awake at night.

Food for thought: several Books for Keeps supporters collected nearly 500 books each simply by emailing their coworkers & neighbors. None of them had any idea they'd get such a response. Hmmmm. Employers, neighbors, churches, organizations, friends, family... who has the books, and how can you get them?

AND: It's not that expensive to ship books, especially if they're paperback children's books. So don't let geography stop you; we'll work out a way to get the books if you can collect them.

AND: let's not forget the power of money. Our partner Family Connection will make it tax deductible, and Books for Keeps will be able to buy books.

We need 72,000 books between now and April 30th. We need your ideas, and your help to put those ideas into action.... fast. We need money. We need people to spread the word at an unprecedented level.

72,000 books will give us a chance to end summer slide NOW, not later. I'm throwing that out in the universe and hoping, hoping, hoping.

Melaney

PS: I know you're ready to get started right away, so here's a link with info on how to send us books and/or funds.

Storage Room Update

2010-11-20T05:33:00.006-05:00

Never, ever have I been so excited about something as simple as a set of bookshelves.

Sorting screeched to a halt when I realized I was quickly running out of space in the storage room. There was a 25-foot set of cubbyholes preventing me from using one entire wall. Boxes were stacked 5 high on the other side and I didn't feel comfortable stacking them any higher.

Bayne hastily started the buy vs. build investigation, but the decision was made when Trey called to say that Niolon Lumber was donating the wood. The Niolons have been stepping in to save the day since the very first Books for Keeps distribution, back when we were still called "the Summer Satchel". Talk about good friends!

It was an interesting couple of days because I couldn't do much to help. Marcus and Brett came by and moved all the existing boxes out of the way. Then Bayne and Trey came in and built the shelves (in about an hour!) Then Chad came by and moved all the boxes back in.

Here's the result:

24 feet of shelving, a generous 24 inches deep. To me, it's a beautiful sight! We have more lumber left over to build shelves on the other side of the room... just as soon as someone strong comes along to move 2 huge desks out of the way. In the meantime, Books for Keeps is now free to resume sorting & boxing books!

Thank you Marcus, Brett, Trey, Bayne and Chad for taking our storage capabilities to the next level. And a special thank you to Niolon Lumber for donating - and custom cutting - the wood!

Inventory Update

2010-11-16T16:35:00.003-05:00

We're slowly but surely digging ourselves out from under the wall of books donated in October. Counting is the next-to-last-step in the process, just before boxing & placing in storage, so it takes a while to get around to it.

Right now, we have 6,997 books inspected, sorted by reading level, counted, and boxed for storage.

In addition to that, we have sorted out about 2,000 "barter books": these are adult books or kids books we can't distribute, but will trade or sell some other way to get more kids' books.

I'm not done yet! There are about 1,000 books that were in such bad shape they can't be used or sold. Books with mildew in the pages, ripped covers, missing pages, falling apart.

So if you're keeping count, we've processed about 10,000 books so far. AND...

... I can easily say there are 3,000 (maybe even 4,000) more books that haven't been touched yet. Fingers crossed that they're usable kids' books; if not, we'll figure something out!

No wonder my back is aching. Keep the books coming. We especially need "chapter books" for grades 2-5. Thousands of them. Spread the word.

Somebody pinch me.

2010-11-12T06:24:00.003-05:00

Did I dream this? I'm pretty sure my good friend Celia called yesterday to tell me her company, IntelliGRACS Group, is funding Books for Keeps 501(c)(3) application.

I'm hoping when you read this, you won't burst into tears like I did.

It costs a LOT of money to form a 501(c)(3). I've been agonizing for 2 months over what to do. Start fundraising? Get a job (a paying job, that is)?

I spoke to a CPA yesterday for advice about how to account for all the book donations, and she said "Get your 501(c)(3) started... NOW." 5 hours later, Celia calls.

I shouldn't be surprised; Celia has a heart the size of War & Peace, and at every stage in Books for Keeps' short life, people have stepped in at the very moment I needed them most. I don't know how to explain what it feels like to be so completely at the mercy of others, all the time. I hate it for the lack of control. I love it for the lessons it's taught me; gratitude is a pretty cool feeling, too.

So, Books for Keeps supporters - will you help me say "THANK YOU"??

Post a comment here on the blog, on our Facebook page, or on the IntelliGRACS Facebook page. And take a minute to figure out if you might need IntelliGRACS Group's services. They find holes in the safest of security systems/processes; better them than a hacker, right?

The world is a lot different when you view it from Cloud 9. I'm staying here for a little while.

The Books for Keeps Sort Room

2010-11-10T17:41:00.011-05:00

Ah, the sort room... what can I say? How about: you have to see it to believe it.

When Whatever It Takes offered me a space to sort and store books, I said Y-E-S. I wanted those books out of my dining room. A little cleanup was required; here's what we started with.

The sort room, pre-cleanup...

... and the storage room, pre-cleanup.

Marcus, Kuk-Kyoung and Brett, great guys from the UGA Volunteer Management program, came by and helped me clean it out and set it up. We have desks all along the walls for sorting books, and bins down the middle of the room for each category of books.

Shawn and her assistants came by for a quick review of all the middle/high school books. Aside from the prison-like decor, it looks pretty good, doesn't it?

While they sorted, I moved in boxes in preparation for our first volunteer sort day. I'd never tried to teach anyone my sort methods... these brave souls offered to be guinea pigs.

We had a second volunteer sort day but sadly, no pictures. It's too bad, because that's when things started getting crazy. While we sorted, people kept stopping by with more and more boxes of books. By the end of the day we could barely squeeze out the door.

And then I went to Atlanta to fetch books from Stephanie, Polly, and Celia...

...and then Bayne brought in books from Terrie & Ashley's URS book drive....

...and then Molly brought by a last batch of books from the Athens book drive...

...and Leigh brought by a last batch of books from Rachel's CDC book drive...

...and then the mail came...

... and Leigh brought more books, and Linh brought more books... and here's the sort room today:

The books are coming in faster than I can process, even with help. But there's another issue. I've learned from my 2 volunteer sort days that everyone's judgment about a book's reading level is different. Call me slow, but I finally figured out I need concrete rules that leave no room for opinion or judgment. So... no more sorting until I've got that worked out. Hopefully I'm close; some wonderful women are coming by Wednesday to help me test & tweak the new system.

Another showstopper: the need for shelving in the storage room. The boxes will tip over if we stack them too high. Bayne and a few volunteers are building shelves this weekend. By this time next week, Books for Keeps should be back on track.

Does this help you understand why I haven't updated the inventory count in quite some time? My knees go weak every time I walk into the sort room. I never saw this coming, folks. Did you?

Where do I even START?

2010-11-10T16:45:00.009-05:00

I'm hoping y'all are believers in the Better Late Than Never philosophy. Or maybe I should pretend I'm not late in posting party pics... I could call it October Flashback. Well, here goes.

We started the book drive with a kickoff party at Hendershots Coffee Shop.

Several people had the guts to perform dramatic readings from children's books. Kids gathered on the floor in front while parents sipped coffee & cocktails .

Nathan is an actor, so his reading was especially dramatic. Tony Castro provided sound effects.

The night was one big blur and I really hope I remembered to thank everyone. Most especially I hope I thanked Shayne for organizing the whole thing, and Leigh for providing the munchies.

Fast forward to the end of October. For the wrap party, we took over the porch at Locos on Harris Street. Why the porch? Check out the weather.

I'm telling you, I was near tears and convinced not a single person would show. I was wrong, and I'm still so grateful to everyone who braved the storm to attend.

One one side of the porch we had pumpkin painting, with Sydney supervising to ensure kids painted ONLY their pumpkins...

... and cupcake decorating, with edible monster parts. No run-of-the-mill cupcakes for these folks; Cathy K made gourmet, from-scratch, spectacular cupcakes popular with kids AND adults. Thanks Cathy!

Bayne collected and counted books as guests arrived...

Hughes, one of Locos' owners, told a story about a witch named GitchieGoomie (I think)...

Families took advantage of the $.99 kids meal...

... and Books for Keeps got 2 more carloads of books. Thank you Shayne, Leigh, Cathy and Locos, for helping me pull together a Boooooook Drive worthy of Halloween!

That's all for tonight. Up tomorrow: the evolution - and subsequent de-evolution - of the Books for Keeps "Sort Room". You have to see it to believe it.

They're Heeeeere

2010-11-10T16:35:00.004-05:00

The latest book in the Wimpy Kid series was released on Nov 7th, and our first copy arrived today. Thank you Will in Statham GA! As promised, a bookplate with your name will be put inside the cover.

It's no secret we get excited about Wimpy Kid books. One of Books for Keeps goals is to reach reluctant readers. What better way than to provide copies of the #1 kid-requested book out there?

So, Will - you get your name on a bookplate and the satisfaction of knowing that one child in Athens will be jumping for joy upon receiving this book. Thank you!

Thank you, South Jackson Elementary Garden Club!

2010-11-10T16:31:00.002-05:00

Yesterday I had the honor of meeting the South Jackson Elementary Garden Club. I've already posted a list of their favorite books, but now you can see the kids themselves. They're a lively bunch with big plans for collecting books to share with others.

Can't wait to hear how many books they collect - good luck kids!

Countdown to the Holidays

2010-11-10T12:03:00.002-05:00

Right about now I'm wishing I had a marketing communications expert to find some really cool way to tell you about this, but alas, I do not. So here goes:

Bring the most children's books for grades K-12 to our sort room between now and Thursday, November 18th, and you'll win a free cut and color with Shayne McBride at City Salon and Spa. Second prize: free haircut.

The October book drive is over, Thanksgiving and the holiday season are approaching, and Books for Keeps still needs many, many more books. Shayne donated two gift certificates for us to use as motivation for all of you haven't yet cleaned off your bookshelves. (Thank you Shayne!)

She's talented... and don't you want to look good for the holidays?

Collect from your friends... coworkers... neighbors... church... school... hold a Facebook drive... we don't care where you get the books. Just bring them in!

You've got ONE WEEK, let's see what you can do.

Deadline is 6pm Thursday Nov 18th. Leave your books (with your name & contact info on the bags/boxes) in the lobby of the Whatever It Takes office at 1000 Barber Street (that's the old school across from the chicken plant.) I'll contact the two winners on Friday Nov 19th.

Shout Out!

2010-11-08T17:55:00.002-05:00

I started working backwards and may never finish... but check out some of the wonderful things people have done for Books for Keeps.

Worth a special mention: JoBeth in Athens who cleaned off her bookshelves at UGA's College of Education and donated 600-700 books. A special thanks to Cathy K who made all the arrangements, picked up, and delivered the books.

But you all know that I'm just as grateful for one book as I am for 700, right? Don't forget it!

I'm trying my best to say thank you to everyone... it just might take a while.

Favorite Books: South Jackson Elementary Garden Club

2010-11-08T14:20:00.002-05:00

The Garden Club at South Jackson Elementary school in Jefferson, GA is a group of fourth and fifth graders who are "branching out" (pun intended) into community service. I get to meet them tomorrow; they want to hear about Books for Keeps! In the meantime, they were kind enough to share a list of their favorite books.

At the top of the list, for both girls and boys: Diary of a Wimpy Kid. (If you're surprised by that, you haven't been reading this blog for long!) The rest of the books are in no particular order and many of them are series books. Here goes:

South Jackson Elementary Garden Club Favorite Books, Past & Present:
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Dear Dumb Diary
City of Embers
American Girl
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
Percy Jackson & the Olympians
Beowulf
Wait Until Helen Comes
Scary Stories (series)
Harry Potter
Captain Underpants
Marvel Superheroes
Holes
The Wish Giver
Junie B Jones
I Spy
A to Z Mysteries
The Cat in the Hat
Babe & Me
Mickey & Me
Jackie & Me
No David
Auntie Claus
Amber Brown
Judy Moody
Spiderwick Chronicles
Books about dogs, Miley Cyrus, and football

Thank you, SJE Garden Club, for sharing your favorites with us!

Oh. My. Gosh.

2010-11-03T10:43:00.005-04:00

I seriously don't remember a four-week period where I've been so busy, so over-extended, and so stressed... well, without getting paid for it. But it's so worth it! I'm reminded of a favorite George Bernard Shaw quote:

"This is the true joy in life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one; the being thoroughly worn out before you are thrown on the scrap heap; the being a force of Nature instead of a feverish selfish little clod of ailments and grievances complaining that the world will not devote itself to making you happy."

The "force of nature" part, as applies to Books for Keeps, is not me - it's you. Books for Keeps is gaining momentum at a rate I never envisioned and kind of can't keep up with. Summer slide is the enemy and YOU are making Books for Keeps a force that is surely unstoppable.

I woke up in the middle of the night agonizing over how many people I have not thanked properly for their help in the last month. Then it occurred to me: what a great problem to have. So many people to thank that it's impossible to keep up. And I was reminded yet again, that gratitude is my favorite emotion.

I have video (but no idea how to get it onto the web), pictures, success stories, volunteers and book donors ... so much to tell you about. Two parties, two volunteer book sorting days, a Web site in the planning stages, upcoming book drives, a sort room that's literally bursting at the seams with books, and some of the most generous, most incredible people I've ever encountered in my life.

I WILL put it in writing and post it. I hate that it's all in my head right now. But I remain, as always, so humbled and grateful for your support. Yes, we are going to stomp summer slide and help a tremendous number of kids, but there's a personal side. My soul is being restored in the process and I see the world - and its inhabitants - in a way I never have before. I'm exhausted, sore from head to toe, kind of brain-dead, and THRILLED, maybe even honored, to be in such a state.

So to all of you who have gone unrecognized, unthanked: you are appreciated and valued. You are making a difference. Books for Keeps can't do this without you. I can't do this without you.

Melaney

Drop-Off Locations Changing

2010-11-01T07:53:00.003-04:00

The Whatever It Takes/Books for Keeps book drive is officially over. While the rest of the country shifts focus from Halloween to Thanksgiving, here at Books for Keeps we'll be counting books for days to come.

Our new focus is on finding new book drop-off locations. The ideal location is open Monday through Saturday, but if you're closed on weekends we can make it work. You just need room for a Books for Keeps bin (we have large & small sizes) to fit in a visible place. Someone from Books for Keeps will check the bin and pick up books as needed.

In Athens, we need easy-to reach locations on each major side of town. We'd love to find drop off locations in Atlanta, Macon, Watkinsville and Winder too.

Give it some thought and let me know if you can help.
Melaney

Trick or Treat - for Books?!

2010-10-24T06:57:00.002-04:00

Michelle from Kingston, Ontario, Canada has been supporting Books for Keeps since the early days. She has some pretty inspiring Halloween plans this year and agreed to share them with us... so here's Michelle, in her own words:

-------------
Last year I heard about a lady in New York State who was giving out books as treats for Halloween. How great it would be to have a really unique "treat" for the two hundred or so kids who prowl our neighbourhood on "All Hallow's Eve"?

I figured we could afford about $1.00 per child/book/treat. I already had some experience with finding brand-new and unread books, still in their plastic covering, at charity shops. I had lots of resources available to me in the form of friends who teach or who have access to "teacher deals" from various publishers. In particular, I've been the "Scholastic Mom" at my kids' school for the past few years, and I've seen lots of fantastic deals come across my desk.

I started with what we already owned. We have four sons, ages five to twelve, and it was easy to start by "purging" their shelves of books. But my biggest source for books ended up being a warehouse sale held in conjunction with Scholastic book fairs. There was a scratch and dent box, with brand-new books for all ages, many of which had defects that even I couldn't find. The best news? They were priced at exactly a dollar a book!

I've ended up with eight cardboard boxes loaded with books to give out on Halloween night this year. I'll be paying particular attention to the numbers of kids that we have trick-or-treating, and also what books are chosen the most quickly. I'm hoping that I'll have something for everyone.

I'm really looking forward to having the chance to chat with the kids when they arrive, to "talk books". It will also be nice to take the time to really "look" at their costumes, and know that they will be leaving with a treat that they have chosen just for themselves. I'll be sure to let you know how it goes :)

-------------

Thanks for sharing Michelle; I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm impressed and inspired. Can't wait to hear the results.

Wishes.....

2010-10-22T09:49:00.003-04:00

Books for Keeps is dreaming of and wishing for many, many copies of the new Diary of a Wimpy Kid book, "The Ugly Truth". We want it so bad we set up a Wish List on Amazon.

Please consider ordering a copy for us! If you order from our wishlist page, Amazon will ship all the books to us (they already have our address on file) when it's released in early November. It's on sale for $7.67 right NOW.

This book is the #1 request from the kids Books for Keeps serves. And giving kids books they want to read is the #1 way to keep them reading.

We still can't find books 1-4 in thrift stores, so our only hope of getting this book is for people to donate them. So please order a copy, and share this post with anyone who might donate the book.

Bonus: I will put the name, city & state of each donor on a book plate inside the cover of every copy we receive between release date and December 1.

Spread the word!

Crazy Week: Update

2010-10-22T07:05:00.003-04:00

Wow. I'm exhausted. I had no idea how much I could accomplish in a single week if I set my mind to it. Getting up at 4am every day helps, but I can't say I'm enjoying it.

This morning I woke up groggy and grouchy, only to discover the most encouraging email from Bonnie and her kids Ava & Jack. My energy is renewed well, ok, not my energy but my enthusiasm. But see what I mean about how doing one little thing can make a difference? What if she decided not to write? Good wishes for Books for Keeps make a difference. There are definitely days where I wake up and think "I can't do this."

So here's what's coming up in Crazy Week Part Two.

- A sorting session this afternoon with a middle school media specialist. She'll sort, I'll watch, listen and learn.

- Our first volunteer sort day! Tomorrow 11 volunteers will sort books. I confess it's a bittersweet moment for me. I've inspected and sorted something like 7,000 books all by myself. It just feels like a huge milestone for Books for Keeps.

- A meeting with an advisory panel of media specialists. Very much hoping for volunteers to manage our wish lists and keep them current. I want Athens kids to have the best books, not just the old ones!

- The Halloween Book Drive. I'm planning as if there'll be a crowd, but mentally preparing myself to be OK if nobody shows.

- The First American Bank "Done in a Day" event. I'll give a brief presentation about Books for Keeps (at 7:30 AM!) to all FAB employees and collect books. I love the "collect books" part!

That, folks, will wrap up this insane schedule I've been keeping. Just in time for 4 family birthday celebrations, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. Wow. 10 weekends til Christmas and I know what I'll be doing for 8 of them. I guess I'll rest in January?

Boooook Drive & Halloween Party!

2010-10-20T17:47:00.006-04:00

I have a serious fear of hosting parties... specifically, that nobody shows up. Please, won't you tell your Athens-based friends?

Here's a link to the event on Facebook.

As if throwing a party isn't enough, I have 3 other events in the next 7 days that require significant advance planning and preparation. Up first: our first volunteer sort day!

I'm excited, but exhausted. Please, October, end soon. I miss my life. What I would give for a week where my only responsibility is to sort books...

A few (more) special needs

2010-10-18T15:46:00.003-04:00

I think you'll be surprised by the sorts of things Books for Keeps needs right now. It's certainly an eclectic list! Can you help? Contact Melaney at givethembooks@gmail.com

Pumpkins: Can you donate pumpkins for the Halloween Book Drive? We'd especially love a giant pumpkin to use as a prize. We need them by Tuesday Oct 26th.

On-Site Pumpkin "Artistes": Could you carve a pumpkin at the Halloween Book Drive, while kids ooh and aah around you? We're especially hopeful someone artistic will carve a giant pumpkin we can use as the prize for most books donated. Oct 27th, 5-7PM

Party Setup & Decor: The Halloween Book Drive would be a lot more festive if someone with style & imagination swooped in to rescue us from dollar-store decor. Party is Oct 27th, outdoors in the Locos picnic area, Harris Street. Take our party and run with it... we'll give you ALL the credit!

Legal and Financial Guidance: We're looking for some help getting our 501(c)(3) efforts off the ground. And we have $135 in our bank account. If you're the pro-bono-minded sort who wants to help a good cause, we could really use an attorney and a CPA.

Strong, Muscular Man (or woman!): During a "book sort", this person will hang around doing very little until a box is full and ready to be moved to storage. Saturday Oct 23rd from 2:00-4:00 OR Tuesday Nov 2nd from 4:00-6:00.

Media Specialists: We're looking for media specialists to help us manage our wish lists and develop our distribution programs.

Sort Room Decor: We're grateful for the free sorting space, but it's white concrete block and looks very much like a prison. No budget, no ideas. Can you help?

Storage Containers: We always need more storage containers. Sturdy, stackable plastic bins work best.

That's it for now. I hope you'll consider helping out. Contact me (Melaney) at givethembooks@gmail.com.

Oh - If you don't see something that appeals, send me an email and tell me what you're good at. I'll put you to work!

One crazy week, coming right up!

2010-10-18T08:10:00.003-04:00

Planning a Halloween book drive/party... preparing for and conducting my first "Volunteer Sort Day"... meeting with a group of Jackson County elementary school kids to talk about Books for Keeps... working out a list of topics for my first Media Specialist Advisory Panel meeting... creating a presentation for next week's "Done in a Day" event at First American Bank...

Will I get it all done? I don't know. I've recently accepted (for the 100th time) that I'm not Superwoman. I'm not taking on anything new til I dig myself out of the over-commitments I'm struggling to fill.

I'm looking on the bright side: these events will lead to good things for Books for Keeps, which means good things for Athens children.

(Please remind me I said that... sometime around Wednesday, ok?)

Rally your neighbors!

2010-10-17T05:59:00.003-04:00

Leigh, a local Books for Keeps supporter, sent an email to her neighborhood list-serv offering to pick up books from any neighbor willing to donate their K-12 books to Books for Keeps.

Her first reply showed up in her inbox within 15 minutes. That's how easy it is to help Books for Keeps. And what a great way to meet the neighbors!

Try it. I'll even write the email for you. givethembooks@gmail.com

Melaney

Save the Date: Oct 27th

2010-10-16T16:35:00.007-04:00

Halloween Book Drive & Trick or Treat !!
Locos on Harris Street
Wednesday Oct. 27th, 5-7PM
Kids eat for $.99 with book donation

Bring your kids, in costume. Bring your books... ALL of them. We're still working out the details, but this will be a family-friendly event to wrap up our month-long book drive.

Who will win the first-ever "Most Books Donated" award? Clean off your bookshelves and maybe, just maybe, it'll be YOU.

Melaney

PS: Can't make it to the party? We have 18 drop off locations... surely you're near one of them!

Check these out...

2010-10-14T08:42:00.006-04:00

First - how about this new logo designed by Ryan, the Creative Director at Whatever It Takes. What do you think? Tell the truth, it won't hurt my feelings (because I didn't design it!)

We're using it in some advertising while I figure out if I'll stick with it. Using it would require a complete redesign of the blog, but I can live with that.

Next: check out our new Shout Out/Breaking News page. People are doing great things for Books for Keeps, and it goes beyond donating books. This gives me a way to say thank you - AND - might spark ideas in other folks who have the ability to help and don't even realize it.

Finally - how about this book drive ad, created by Ryan and Alex from Whatever It Takes?!

The book drive response has been strange. Very few books have been donated at our drop off locations, but as the word spreads, more people contact me to volunteer to sort books. I'm trying to figure out what to do. Ideas?

Volunteer Opportunities

2010-10-13T11:11:00.007-04:00

This page changes as our needs change, so check back periodically.

Drop Off Locations Needed
Can your business serve as a drop-off location after the October book drive ends? Melaney enjoys meeting people in parking lots, but it's not particularly efficient...

Sort Day Volunteers (Athens GA)

We'll be scheduling a sort day soon. Enter your email on our Volunteer Spot page for access to our calendar.

1. Book Sorters - Athens GA
Help sort books by reading level. We provide guidelines, training, and assistance.

2. Storage Helpers - Athens GA
We need one or two folks with strong backs to carry boxes of books to storage as boxes are sorted and packed. This is a low-volume job so bring a book (or your homework) for down-time.

Better and better and better....

2010-10-12T13:54:00.002-04:00

What a difference a week makes. Things are just getting better and better here at Books for Keeps.

The majority of the unsorted books have been moved to our new sort room, so I can't be distracted by my sorting obsession while I'm working from home.

Three wonderful angels - Mary, Kay and Katherine - handle the majority of our book mooching. Michelle and Donna appear to be funneling every book in Canada straight to Athens. My niece MK logs the books received and spends much of each Tuesday running Books for Keeps errands.

Cathy K, a former nonprofit Executive Director, is helping me organize a lot of the administrative aspects of Books for Keeps so we can take advantage of opportunities that come our way.

Brett, a UGA volunteer, found a web site to help me publish our volunteer sort days. It allows people to read the tasks they'll perform and sign up on the spot.

Patti, a language arts consultant/teacher/book reviewer is pulling together an advisory group of media specialists to help with everything from designing distribution programs to keeping our wish list current with new, popular titles.

Volunteers are signing up for our first two sort days. It's weird to realize I won't see, examine, touch every book myself.

Alex and Shayne, Whatever It Takes gurus, are helping me plan a book drive wrap party that will be a mini-book drive in itself. I hope we can pull it off!

So what am I doing? Everything else! This very minute, I'm focused most on creating well-defined volunteer job descriptions. Basically, I'm dividing my massive to do list into chunks that could be divvied up among all the different people who want to help but are waiting for me to give them something to do. These will be posted online so folks can figure out for themselves where their skills will fit best.

The one casualty of all this progress: my ability to report our inventory count. I'll only be able to update it on book sorting days. I miss it already, but it's a small price to pay for this new level of forward momentum. If I had to guess, I'd say there are 500-700 uncounted books sitting in boxes in the new sorting room.

I'm tired, happy, and optimistic. And thankful for YOU. Keep sending those books.

Twitter! And Shout Outs!

2010-10-11T14:15:00.003-04:00

After much prodding... Books for Keeps is finally on Twitter. What if nobody follows us?! This is truly nerve-wracking!

But I see the value already. People jump in to help Books for Keeps in so many different ways that never make it onto the blog. This is an exciting time for a fledgling... organization? project? movement? Things are changing by the minute!

Hopefully Twitter will help me share the news... and the gratitude. BFK_Athens. You don't have to join Twitter to read our page!

(I hope the fact that someone already took "Books for Keeps" doesn't mean our name is ummmm, illegal! Any attorneys out there?)

Progress!

2010-10-10T12:25:00.010-04:00

The past two weeks were some of the most eventful, stressful, nerve-wracking, joyful, hope-filling, despair-inducing weeks I've had in a long, long time.

It started with book drive preparation, which took over my life, my home, even my dreams. The cardboard collection boxes were free, but ugly. We decided to paint them... during a thunderstorm. Have you ever painted cardboard? In 100% humidity? Not a pretty sight. The final product looked pretty good:

Til the tape holding the signs in place came off. Turns out damp cardboard and tape don't mesh well. So I tried a stronger tape, then glue-stick, then finally Elmers. All together, I attached the signs 4 times before they stuck.

The big bins went in large drop-off locations like Locos and Earth Fare. These smaller bins were for the First American bank branches.

18 bins in all, and my niece MK delivered most of them. It was total chaos at my house for days.... I don't think I've ever eaten so much fast food and takeout in my life. Sleep was lowest priority on the totem pole.

Next: a book drive kick-off party at Hendershots. I told the Books for Keeps story - in public - for the first time ever. Thankfully, it's one of the first times I've ever gotten through the story without choking up or flat-out crying. Sorry, but the thought of a child at home without a single book... counting the days til summer ends so she can read again... still kills me. I sort of hope it always will, know what I mean?

I was convinced nobody would show up, but I'd say there were 60-75 people in total over the three hours. People brought their kids....

... and a few guests did readings from children's books.

As if telling the story publicly wasn't nerve-wracking enough, a UGA TV reporter showed up at the party, camera in tow and I gave my first-ever TV interview. No idea about an air date yet.

With the book drive underway, my thoughts turned to getting organized. I'd been using my personal funds to purchase sturdy boxes and plastic bins to store the boxes in, but those funds dried up and I was despairing over what to do.

As is typical in Books for Keeps' brief history, somebody stepped in to help just at the moment I wanted to give up. Cathy K contacted Barnes and Noble and arranged for us to have access to as many of their book boxes as we needed. Relief!

Then... just as my shoulder and neck muscles started to relax: my first-ever radio show. I think it went ok. If I can find a transcript or feed I'll post it; no luck so far.

So here we are today, and a major milestone is underway: Books for Keeps' very own SORTING AND STORAGE SPACE! Hallelujah. I mean, look at my dining room. Would you want this in your house?

But there are a few hurdles to jump. Here's the current state of what will become the Books for Keeps sorting room:

This will be the storage room, just as soon as we clean out everybody else's stored stuff.

Bayne is over at the former school-turned-storage space, home to Whatever It Takes. He's cleaning, and took about 2,000 books with him. I'm at home, preparing to conduct my first ever "Sort Training". Cathy - the same Cathy who scored the Barnes and Noble boxes - has offered to become a Perma-Sorter: someone who learns to sort well enough to teach others how to do it.

I'm ready for her! I have a diagram, a flow chart, and labels on the sorting table.

So we'll sort for a little while, then head over to our new space and start cleaning.

Things always seem to get a bit worse before they get waaaay better, and I'm hoping that's what's happening for Books for Keeps. If all goes well, this week I'll get to focus on how to utilize all the folks who've offered to help.

It's a beautiful day here in Athens! The Dawgs finally won, the weather is perfect, and Books for Keeps is entering a new phase. One I hope and pray will ultimately enable us to give more books to more kids... which will enable more kids to read over summer... which will lead to the end of summer slide in this wonderful town I call home.

Inventory Update: 4,581 (sort of....)

2010-10-09T11:00:00.003-04:00

Today's inventory: 4,581 books! BUT: that doesn't count the 10-15 boxes of unsorted, uncounted, uninspected books that have piled up from recent donations.

Whatever It Takes has offered me two rooms to sort and store books, so I've started dropping off all new donations there. We'll have a big sort day and figure out a new inventory count.

But for now... here's what I have in my closets, dining room, and garage:

1,198 Beginner (ex: Dr. Seuss, Little Golden Books)
709 Chapter Books, level 1 (grades 1-2)
492 Chapter books, level 2 (grades 2-4)
406 Chapter books, level 3 (grades 3-5)
908 Middle/High school
167 Junie B Jones
142 Captain Underpants
363 Goosebumps
51 Diary of a Wimpy Kid (check it out!!!)
145 Loose (all levels, counted but not sorted)

That's a lot of books, folks. But not nearly enough if we're going to eradicate the nasty Summer Slide. Clean off your bookshelves, then tell your friends!

Party Notes

2010-10-07T06:32:00.003-04:00

The book drive kickoff party was fun and not nearly as scary as I thought it would be. And... people showed up!

I'm waiting for pictures and video, then I'll tell you all about it.

We got 2 carloads of books. Carloads!

The Mother of All Shout-Outs

2010-10-03T12:17:00.003-04:00

Book drive preparation and myriad other responsibilities have kept me from sharing all the good things happening here over the past few weeks. I'm allowing myself a break to get you caught up. But I must confess, I'm doing it for selfish reasons. I've been so slammed, so overwhelmed, that I just want to take a few minutes and focus on the blessings instead. I need a boost, and this will do it!

But where do I start?

How about the folks who've volunteered to monitor drop-off bins for an entire month? Jamie, Michelle, Natasha, Sayge, Johanna, Linh, Lauren, Molly, Melissa, Leigh, and Shayne: THANK YOU. There's no way I could do it by myself.

Like my last Shout Out post, there's a category for Emergency Rescue. My rescuer? Emily, from the Oconee campus of Gainesville State College. The clock was ticking down and I had no signs for the drop off bins. She not only finished the sign design, she got the school to donate the signs themselves: 18x24 poster-sized signs that a friend had priced at $22 each if I printed them. They are gorgeous, and catastrophe was avoided. Thank you Emily and Gainesville State!

Sandy from Ventura California continues to send in box after box of popular, pristine books that I'm holding in reserve for a set of the neediest kids. Sandy, I really don't know what Books for Keeps would do without you. Thank you.

BookMoochers continue to donate points (although my angel moochers have been so effective that we've used most of them!) Thank you Gabrielle in Massachusets, Chen in Israel, Debbi in Alabama, Ethel in Connecticut, Jessica in Italy, Dawn and Asusu in New York, Kim in Pennsylvania, Sandy in California, Hedremp, Donna and Michelle in Canada, Kami in Minnesota, Kay in South Carolina, and Eric in Florida. Wow. And THANK YOU.

And how about Books for Keeps earliest supporters, frequently mentioned in the pages of this blog? Jan in Davis, CA continues to send BookCrossing books, and I'm tickled when she sticks in an extra book for me. Shipments showed up from Carrie in New Ulm, MN and Nancy in Staten Island, NY, too. I love, love, love when I'm surprised by these awesome women. And I know I'm forgetting somebody... Heather? Michelle? Alexa? I could go on... but you know who you are, and you know I appreciate you, even if my records are a little, ummmm, wrong.

Rachel from Atlanta sent over 3 more boxes of books from her "cubicle drive". One email to co-workers, one cubicle, hundreds of books. Wow. Thank you Rachel! And her sister-in-law Leigh (perhaps more accurately described as one of my oldest college friends) parted with her precious Harry Potter paperbacks. Thanks Leigh!

Speaking of Leigh - she's also donated storage bins, she's monitoring a high-volume drop-off location, and she's providing the food for the book drive kick-off party. As a bonus, she provides "Step Away from the Ledge" encouragement during the more overwhelming Books for Keeps moments. Thanks Leigh!

My Phi Mu college friends came to Athens for a girls' weekend, so of course we turned it into a book drive. A really fun book drive... Thank you Kelley, Millie, Nechelle, Michelle, Stacy and Megan! 9 boxes of books!

Courtney from Buford has been telling people about Books for Keeps, snapping up books, and we meet like spies at the Golden Pantry parking lot for the exchange. There aren't enough books in Athens to supply what we need; thank you Courtney for helping bring in books from surrounding areas!

Aunt Linda shipped a huge box of adult books from Tullahoma TN; I'll use them to barter for kids books. Thank you Aunt Linda - it was a nice surprise!

Books for Keeps also received a shipment of books from Chen in Israel. Yes, Israel! Thank you Chen, that's quiet an effort and I really appreciate it.

Whitney, right here in Athens, donated a box of books... she's been helping me by introducing me to people who might be able to help, and now her kids' books are in our inventory too. Thank you Whitney!

Cousin Smash's mother-in-law Peggy, in Richmond VA, didn't have any modern childrens books on hand so she ordered a shipment from Amazon! I feel like I'm saying "wow" too much, but... Wow! Thank you Peggy!

Samantha in Houston hit the jackpot on Captain Underpants books at a half-price book store. She snapped them up and mailed them in. And what a great example of seeing an opportunity to help and just jumping on it.

Well. This might be the longest blog post I've ever written. I hope that reading through this (if you made it to the end!) you see the trend: Books for Keeps may have started with one woman saying "I can do something", but it's become a network of individuals, all saying "I can do something". Those small acts of generosity add up: 4,000 books in inventory!

Thank you everybody, and as always, I'm sorry and horrified at the thought that I've forgotten someone. Forgive me, and keep sending books!

Athens Book Drive, October 1-31st

2010-09-29T06:47:00.005-04:00

Historic moment happening here! Books for Keeps is holding its first-ever book drive.

18 drop-off locations around Athens, GA (including Watkinsville & Winder) will be collecting books October 1-31.

These books will be the primary weapon in our fight to end summer slide in Athens, so clean off your bookshelves! Just look for the Books for Keeps drop-off bin at any Athens-area First American Bank, Locos, Earth Fare, or at one of our many partner locations; see the full list below. (Map)

Don't have books to donate? We have a wish list of our top requests (books kids WANT to read) posted on Amazon; they'll ship the books straight to Books for Keeps. Or, donate funds and we'll buy the books. We also love book store gift cards!

Drop-off Locations: (Map)

Athens Banner-Herald: 1 Press Place; 8am-5pm Mon-Fri
ACC Recycling: 725 Hancock Industrial; 8am-5pm Mon-Fri
City Salon & Spa: 100 Athens West Pkwy; Hours vary Mon-Sat
Classic City Orthodontics: 600 Oglethorpe Ave, Hours vary Mon-Fri
Classic City Orthodontics: 1091 Park Drive, Watkinsville; Hours vary Mon-Fri
EarthFare: 1689 South Lumpkin St.; 9AM-9PM 7 days/week
First American Bank: All Locations. Map/Hours
Habitat for Humanity ReStore: 532 Barber Street; 9am-5pm Mon-Sat
Locos Eastside: 1985 Barnett Shoals Road; 11am-11pm 7 days/week
Locos Westside: 2020 Timothy Road; 11am-11pm 7 days/week
Locos Intown: 581 South Harris Street; 11am-11pm 7 days/week
Piedmont College - The Cafe: 595 Prince Avenue; 9am-5pm Mon-Fri/ lunch Sun

Don't put it off... go clean off your bookshelves right now. Your books will make a difference in an Athens child's educational development. What could be more important?

PS: If you're in the Macon area, take your books to Susan Cooper at the John Drew Smith Tennis Center. (Thanks Mom!)

Books for Keeps on YouTube?

2010-09-27T18:53:00.002-04:00

Alexa, a Books for Keeps supporter (and virtual friend) suggested we (record? tape? what's it called these days?) some of the "dramatic" readings from the kickoff party and put them on YouTube. What a great idea! I'm on it Alexa; I don't have the equipment but I've put the word out.

So many of you outside the state of Georgia have been supporting Books for Keeps since before it had a name. I wish you could all fly to Athens and we'd finally meet in person after all these months... all these emails... all these BOOKS!

Here's hoping we can make the video happen.

Melaney

PS: 4,000 books!

Welcome, Earth Fare!

2010-09-27T05:46:00.004-04:00

Earth Fare has joined the book drive as a drop off location! What a great location, right in the heart of Five Points. In today's world of near-constant multi-tasking, isn't it great that you can drop off your books and buy your groceries with a single stop? Thank you, Lauren and Earth Fare!

What's with the inventory count?

2010-09-26T17:28:00.002-04:00

Today I took the day off. No book drive prep. No book sorting.

Yesterday was a different story. I sorted 6 or 7 large boxes of books... only to get 9 more from friends over the weekend.

Soooo... I have no idea what the inventory count is! I usually keep a rough count as books come in but when they come in this fast, I get behind. Clearly a different system is needed. Regardless, I'll get a "real" count when I finish all the sorting and get to boxing the books for storage.

As for the book drive: the bins are painted, a volunteer is finalizing the signs for the bins (thanks Emily!), and Marcus from UGA's Volunteer Management Class is rallying the bin monitors (thanks Marcus & volunteers!)

This is really happening! I pinched myself just to make sure.

Updated Middle School Wish List

2010-09-25T10:58:00.003-04:00

I'm making changes to the middle school wish list after meeting with a local media specialist who's familiar with what kids in our area are into reading these days.

She tells me if I collected nothing else, most of the students would be thrilled with books from the Bluford Series from Townsend Press. I can't believe they're only $1. I pay $.75 at some thrift stores for used books!

She says the kids also love books by Jacqueline Woodson, and graphic novels, especially the Bone series by Jeff Smith, and the Septimus Heap series by Angie Sage.

Things I'm removing: the "stallion" books by Walter or Terri Farley, and CS Lewis books. I have lots and lots of both but they aren't on the "hot list" these days, so I don't need to actively look for more.

Thanks for your help Shawn!

Welcome, Habitat for Humanity!

2010-09-23T09:46:00.006-04:00

Wow. The Habitat for Humanity ReStore here in Athens is joining our book drive! For the month of October, the children's books collected will be given to Books for Keeps. I'm floored.

Would you believe... the woman organizing the ReStore event is the former 2nd grade teacher who helped me start Books for Keeps that very first year, when we were calling it a Summer Satchel? Thank you, Kim!

So here's the thing: you can take books for Books for Keeps AND all your other unwanted household items to ReStore, get rid of them, AND get a tax receipt... all at the same time! (Do some shopping while you're there too; you wouldn't believe the lamps I got for $15!)

Thank you, Habitat for Humanity!

Following is an announcement I'm passing along from Habitat:

In recognition of World Habitat Day 2010, the Athens Habitat ReStore will hold a Donation Drive from 9am – 5pm on October 4th. The ReStore offers the community an active venue for reusing and recycling building materials, home furnishings, clothes, books, and other materials that would otherwise be thrown away.

During the month of October, the Habitat ReStore will also partner with the Books for Keeps program to collect new and gently used books to give to children who might otherwise not have their own books. Donations to the ReStore are tax deductible and all profits from sales stay in the community to support Habitat’s continuing effort to eliminate poverty housing.

The Athens World Habitat Day celebration will end with a benefit party at Hendershot’s, located at 1560 Oglethorpe Avenue in Athens, from 7 – 10pm. The event will feature a band and a raffle. It’s free and open to the public with a suggested donation of $10/raffle ticket.

Athens Area Habitat for Humanity is an independent affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International. Since 1988, Athens Habitat, along with our dedicated volunteers, has built 70 single-family homes, 16 Emergency Handicapped Access Ramps (EHARP), and began renovating a 16-unit apartment complex for affordable rent. Learn more at www.athenshabitat.com.