Book It! A Grand Success! | | |
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On an amazingly warm October 28th morning, runners, walkers, sponsors, and volunteers gathered in a celebration of books for children! There were Girl Scout teams, neighborhood teams, Girls on the Run teams, family teams, and sponsor teams, all running or walking together to raise funds to purchase books for 20,000 deserving children served by NOVA RIF.
A full album of the day can be found by clicking here and it captures the spirit of the day!
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There were principals (Dr. Ingrid Bynum/aka Mrs. Virginia 2023 of Patrick Henry K-8 on left and Carmen De La Cruz Scales of Carlin Springs ES on right) | |
There were kids of all ages, many in book character costumes. The lollipops, medals, and a book for every child were a big hit, as this photo shows! | |
And that Clifford, the Big Red Dog -- he got around with hugs and joy for all! Clifford was played by NOVA RIF Young Ambassador Avery Cañedo. What a good sport! | |
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Thanks from the NOVA RIF Board to everyone who helped to make Book It For Books 2023 a grand success!
A full list of sponsors and donors can be found here.
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Meanwhile, our work to bring books to children goes on! | |
Witches and goblins and ghosties -- oh my! The ACCA Child Development Center held its annual Halloween parade and book distribution, complete with classroom to classroom trick-or-treating, pumpkin painting, and the choice of a book for each child. NOVA RIF board members Chris and Maureen McLaughlin read and used finger puppets to act out the book Room on the Broom, to the delight of the children. Click here to find more book distributions so far this academic year! | |
Authors in Our Schools
Author-illustrator Lulu Delacre participated as the first in-person author to visit a NOVA RIF school as part of our Authors in Our Schools program, an initiative funded by a gift from author David Baldacci and his wife Michelle Baldacci. Ms. Delacre, a three-time Pura Belpré Award honoree and New York Times Bestselling artist, has been writing and illustrating children's books since 1980, with 44 books to her name (so far!).
On November 9, she visited Arlington's Carlin Springs Elementary School to the absolute delight of the gathered children. In a packed cafeteria, she explained how she writes a book and taught the children that everyone has a story to tell! Every second through fifth grade child was gifted a book -- either Veo, Veo, I See You or Cool Green: Amazing, Remarkable Trees, two of the bilingual author's most recent books.
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Hands went up across the cafeteria as the author explained how family food traditions can help tell a story! | |
Children crowded around to have their photo taken with Ms. Delacre (r), principal Carmen De La Cruz Scales (in blue), and librarian and RIF of NOVA liaison Holly Nisco (in tan). | |
For over an hour after her presentations, author Delacre autographed every single book! Children kept peeking in the door to see if they could pick up their copy! | |
RIF of NOVA funds new books for 20,000 children, and we also collect new and very gently used children's books for redistribution. If you are interested in setting up a book drive, we have some guidelines to make the process easier. Click here for details. Meet some recent book donors below! (A big book donor page is here!) | |
Girl Scout Troop 52038 collected books from their friends and neighbors. In all, they donated 450 books for other children to love and enjoy. Not only that, they also ran or walked in Book It For Books! Way to go and thank you, Scouts! | |
Dweck Properties hosted a NOVA RIF book drive with a few of the firm's apartment communities. For this event, -- part of a “Do What Matters” commitment -- book donations were gathered from the residents of The Park at Arlington Ridge, Crystal Towers, and Park at Pentagon. We are most grateful! | |
Eileen Johnson was an elementary ed teacher in California before moving to Northern Virginia. She recently donated her collection of over 1,600 picture books, beginning readers, and chapter books for young children to NOVA RIF and is pleased to see that they will continue to inspire young readers in her new NOVA community. And so are we! | | |
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*Send a check:
Reading is Fundamental of Northern Virginia, Inc.
P.O. Box 7012
Arlington, VA 22207-0012
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The Combined Federal Campaign -- open through January 15, 2024 -- is an option for federal employees and retirees. Donate to NOVA RIF at # 18818. | |
Thank you for any donation -- no matter how big or small! And thank you for being part of the RIF of NOVA community!
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Please share the RAP! Forward our newsletter to your friends and anyone interested in providing books to children who need them!
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