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Dear Friend of Reader To Reader, I hope you enjoy this newsletter about the Reader To Reader Book Project. Our success is very much due to your donations of books, postage money, and most of all your generous spirit. Please forward this newsletter and help us spread the word. This month I'd like to share with you the efforts of a very special volunteer. In a remarkable display of inspiration, self-determination and follow-through, an Ithaca, New York, boy has brought magnificent results with his Read-A-Thon fundraiser for the Reader To Reader book program. Twelve-year-old Dylan Bleier first got the idea for the fundraiser after reading a recent New York Times article about a thread-bare school library in his home state. The school's antiquated library had books dating mostly from the 1950s and 1960s, with some books dating back to the 1930s. When Dylan learned that the school had already received a large number of donations on account of the article, he turned to the Internet and selected the Reader To Reader program as his way to help numerous poor schools across the country. Dylan raised $1,355 for Reader To Reader from both an information table he set-up at a local Book Fest and from pledges he received for his Read-A-Thon. Along the way, he enlisted three fifth grade classes in the cause, as well as, his sister and four neighborhood kids. He also convinced his local Barnes & Noble Booksellers and Borders Bookstore to donate gift certificates and books, which he used as prizes for the kids that participated in the Read-A-Thon. We are absolutely astounded at the success of Dylan's fundraiser. Not only did he raise a lot of money that we will gratefully use to cover the shipping costs of thousands of books to needy schools, but the way he did it really knocked us out. Dylan used meticulous planning and lots of effort to bring lots of results. He is a tremendous role model for all of us as to the kind of impact we can have when we put out minds to it. He has kindly offered us the fine materials he developed as a blueprint for other kids interested in holding Reader To Reader Read-A-Thons. We can't thank him enough for all he's done. Next up for Dylan is an ice cream party he is planning to hold to thank his Read-A-Thon participants. We hope he has an extra scoop or two for himself because he deserves it. The first year of our Mississippi Book Project continues to bring letters from the schools we aid. Here two we just received last week.
We look forward to not only aiding these schools again during the 2004-2005 school year, but we are currently working on adding additional Mississippi schools, as well. Thank you for reading this newsletter and we thank you for your support. Until next month,
Sincerely, Please help us with a tax-deductible donation. Here are just a few of our recent book shipments: Shaw High School, Shaw, MS
Fort Fairfield Elementary, Fort Fairfield, ME
Lake Providence High School, Lake Providence, LA
John Essex High School, Demopolis, AL
Springfield Academy, Springfield, MA
R.D. Wilson Elementary, Waymart, PA
SV Marshall High School, Lexington, MS
Wyoming Indian High School, Ethete, WY
DeBerry Elementary, Springfield, MA
And that's just the tip of the iceberg! To be added to this newsletter please email dmazor@readertoreader.org |