Snow Time To Waste

Heeeellllllloooooooo there,

How was your snow day? It was great for the Bookaneers. We delivered 200 books to Grady North Fulton, bringing our total of books delivered to Georgia medical clinics through Reach Out And Read to 750!

Tanya N. (left) and Kathy N. (right) with boxes of 100 books each

Kathy N. (left) and Tanya N. (right) putting the boxes in Dr. Sumner's office

Then, after school today, we took a trip to the post office to send off 14 boxes we had prepared on Monday. These 192 books went to separate troop stations overseas, bringing our total of books delivered through Operation Paperback to 434!

Kathy N. (left) and Tanya N. (right) at the post office

Finally, we just handed off the remainder of our book collection to the Engles (thanks SO much!). Justin and Rachel will be heading the Bookaneers effort next year while the rest (go '09!) graduate. We're truly excited to have the book drive continue beyond: this is just the beginning of the next chapter in our service club. =]

Delivery Time!

FROM MOLLY E.:

Dear Kathy and Tanya,

On Saturday, February 14, we delivered children's and young adult books to the Foster Care Support Foundation, Inc. in Roswell. They were very pleased to receive the books - especially those for teens! All donations to the center are given at no charge to Foster care children and families. The Foundation is not government funded and relies solely on private donations to support foster children Statewide. They collect clothes, toys, books, cribs, carseats, high chairs and strollers. Their brochure states: "We are here to change the face of the forgotten child." Posters were on the walls with a picture of a child and the words, "I am not invisible." We hope we helped make a difference for these children by delivering quality books for them to keep and enjoy. We delivered 154 young adult/classics books and 141 children's books for a total of 296. Cheryl Tyvoll, a volunteer at the center, received us and thanked Bookaneers on behalf of the program's founder, Rachel Ewald.

Please see attached photos of myself, Justin and Rachel Engle from Bookaneers making the delivery. My younger brother David, age 8, also helped! He especially liked playing with one of the foster babies visiting while we were there.

Molly

Justin E. and Rachel E. (with Hayley M. in the background!)

Rachel E. and Justin E., who must not like calculus very much

David E., the most awesome 8 year old!

The Engle clan -- thanks so much!!

Justin E. with a bag of books outside the FCSF in Roswell

Justin E. and Molly E.!

All in Order

This Sunday, the Bookaneers had another very productive and very fun sorting day. There were quite a few people this time, which made the work lighter and the time shorter for everyone. Shari M., Liz T., Hayley M., Kate P., and Ramsey W. all gathered in the Nguyen's garage to categorize, bag, and box the many books we've received since the last time. Also in attendance were a couple of new faces, Justin and Rachel E. They are underclassmen, so next year when the rest of us graduate, they'll fortunately be there to take control. Molly E. and her mother are going to take some books and distribute them to various places soon -- we have a lot of new plans and ideas, including elementary schools, foster homes, fire departments, and women's shelters. An exciting future is ahead of us!

Liz T. ready to work.

Justin E. displaying his super strength.

Tanya N. with her mother along with Molly E. and hers.

Ramsey W., Tanya N., and Kathy N. taking some newly boxed books out.

Tanya N., Justin E., Ramsey W., and Molly E. showing off some very nice cookbooks.

Kathy N., Ramsey W., and Tanya N. loading many books into the Engles' car!

Bookaneers Overseas, Soldierin' On

What a great note to get in the mail! We're proud to support our troops.

We're planning another book sorting in early February, so get excited.

Deck the Halls with Books, by Golly!

Unfortunately, things are pretty busy right now, what with finals and the upcoming winter vacation...

However, we'd like to really thank the Smith family for donating (and helping us load!) a whole carful of books -- we very much appreciate it! Millie S.'s Girl Scout Troop, including Rachel E., little sister of Molly E., raised hundreds of books for our cause as a service project. Thanks so much!

A safe and happy break to all, and hope you read some good books over the holidays!

Happy Thanksgiving! Thanks for your giving!

Ah, today was the first day of break, and the Nguyens took some time to deliver 100 books each to 2 clinics. We plan to pick up books this week, as well -- they'll put us over 2000 books! Shirts are on the way, too.

Kathy N. (left) and Tanya N.

Kathy N. (left) and Tanya N.

Kathy N. (left), Tanya N., and Dr. Nazarie Romain

the Tides, They Are A-Changin'

Whew, October was a busy month, so it's really nice to be able to focus on Bookaneers efforts more now. New developments!

First, we will have t-shirts soon. It'd be great to get input about possible designs!

Also, we're proud to support our troops by participating in Operation Paperback, through which we can send gently used paperback books to American soldiers overseas who request them. On Thursday, we sent 11 boxes with a total of 222 books. Thanks so much to Mrs. Nguyen, who sponsored the shipment, which cost roughly $5 a box with the media mail option. We hope they can arrive in time for the holidays!

Tanya N. (left) and Kathy N. with the boxes at the post office

So even if you do not have books to donate, please consider sponsoring a box of books -- any amount helps!

Finally, thanks very much to the Beta members who donated books. On Thursday, we picked up 134 books from Mrs. Benda's room, bringing our total count really close to 2000! :D