Book Give Back Event Fills Local Classrooms with over 11,000 Books

On GivingTuesday, Crayons to Classrooms (C2C) hosted their third annual Book Give Back event providing free books to 167 Miami Valley teachers. This special shopping event distributed 11,011 books that local teachers will use to fill their classroom libraries and gift to their students for the holidays.

According to the US Department of Education, two thirds of children in low-income families don’t have access to any children’s books at home. C2C hosts this event in the middle of the school year in an effort to support literacy for local students. Teachers are encouraged to fill their shopping bag with as many books as they need. One teachers fit 213 books in her bag to take back to her elementary students. Each teacher was also able to grab a gift off the tree! Dayton Sewing Collaborative donated handmade bookmarks for each teacher at the event.

Below are a few testimonials from teachers who attended the Book Give Back event:

“The books we received today will be immediately put into the hands of our students! Our students don’t always have books at home to read! This will continue the learning process and make a connection [between] school and home!” – Fairborn Primary educator

“It was amazing seeing so many teachers filling up bags of FREE books to stock their classroom libraries. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to bring literacy into my classroom without breaking the bank!” – David H. Ponitz Career Technology Center teacher

The event distributed over $44,000 in early readers, upper elementary, young adult, multicultural, and nonfiction books. This would not have been possible without the support of our table sponsors, Sandy and David McSemek, and generous donors: Half Price Books Beavercreek, 2nd and Charles, Dayton Public Library, Dayton Book Fair, Brookville Local Schools, Project Read, Griffin Academy, Lisa Libraries, St. Helen’s Parish, St. Vincent, and Scholastic through the Kids in Need Foundation.