It was almost déjà vu for this year’s Give-a-Book campaign through Literacy Lambton.
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When all the donations were counted recently in the annual Christmas-season campaign that gives books to children and youth in need, the total was one shy of the 3,787-book record set in 2022said executive director Tracy Pound.
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“I didn’t expect we would come so close to that,” she said, thanking the people and organizations who helped.
“Obviously times are tough, and yet our community still just shows that they are willing to step up and help when there’s need,” she said.
The campaign that started about 30 years ago and distributes books to various community agencies—like Habitat for Humanity for when families move into new builds, or Victim Services Sarnia-Lambton that uses books about things like resiliency to help comfort kids affected by trauma—in 2021 raised a then-record 3,104 booksPound said.
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That was up almost 900 books compared to 2020, she added, noting the previous record was about 2,900 books.
Jumping nearly 70 per cent in two years is quite a bit, Pound said, so, amid inflation, she was expecting something more in the neighborhood of 3,500 books for 2023.
“I thought (2022’s) would be a very hard goal to match,” she said, calling getting there “a tremendous success.”
Now, hopes are to perhaps top 3,800 in 2024, she said.
“If we could even meet the 3,800 mark, I would be over the moon.”
Participating agencies—this year there were 34—send in book requests, she said.
Some request specific titles, she said, and those are generally sourced in advance with cash donations and grants.
Pound said she ordered 1,400 books in August, for instance, at a huge discount using grant money, and paying about $2 per book.
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The organization’s “elves”—retired educators with a good eye for age appropriate readings—help divvy up the others and match them to agency requests, she said.
“If we’re nearing the end and we have some extra (books) in that age group, we’ll box up some more,” she said, adding “it is just weird how the numbers came so close.”
Various community organizations donated, and local book stores offered discounts for books purchased for the campaign, Pound said, noting most of the donations this year were books instead of cash.
“I think that’s a very encouraging thing as well,” she said.
“I love that people have chosen to support our small businesses.”
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