The Mansfield Rotary Club and Mansfield Kiwanis kicked off their joint book drive to benefit the Big Red Bookshelf of United Way on Tuesday afternoon, and they plan on bringing books in droves to meet the needs of the county. In fact, Rotary President Kristie Massa set a goal of 1,000 books donated to the Big Red Bookshelf program.
“We always joke about being in competition with Kiwanis, but we’re not calling it a competition,” she said with a laugh. “It’s a joint effort and drive, and it’s a really great opportunity for all of us to do something very simple by getting some books and giving back to our community.”
As the Big Red Bookshelf program spreads across Richland County, the need for books to keep the shelves filled continues to grow and the level of books to restock the shelves is low. Members of the Rotary Club and Kiwanis are tasked with bringing gently used or new books for children from birth to third grade.
“Research has shown that children that just have a book in the home, their odds of graduating high school rise tremendously,” said Liz Prather, immediate past president of the Mansfield Kiwanis. “There are many children in our community that don’t have that access.”
Prather explained the Big Red Bookshelf program resonated with United Way as the organization looked for a project that would increase childhood literacy. Since the program began almost a year and a half ago, bookshelves have appeared at the Mansfield/Ontario/Richland County Health Dept. WIC Office, Shelby Help Line and the Bellville Neighborhood Outreach Center, among many other locations.
“Even if children are in families where it’s not a priority to have books, when a child has a book we have never seen a child with a book that is not thrilled with it,” said Prather. “So we put the bookshelves in places where families that may not have access to books come.”
So far, Prather said the Big Red Bookshelf program has given more than 6,000 books to children in need. Students at Madison, Mansfield Senior High and Pioneer Career and Technology Center built the bookshelves locally.
“We really appreciate the support of both the Kiwanis and the Rotary Club in this drive,” said Dan Varn, Executive Director of United Way. “It’s a really great project that United Way can call its own and it’s been driven by community support. From a United Way perspective we appreciate the community support and we appreciate your support in this drive where everybody is a winner at the end.”
As Massa shared stories of students who were told they are not allowed to have books in their house, the importance of the Big Red Bookshelf project was not understated.
“One of the biggest things we hear about in this day and age is how do we prepare kids for school,” she said. “If we can get their literacy higher, then their chances of graduating and finding a good job are higher. It’s just better for our community, and it’s as simple as going and getting a book and donating it.”
“One of the biggest things we hear about in this day and age is how do we prepare kids for school,” Kristie Massa said. “If we can get their literacy higher, then their chances of graduating and finding a good job are higher.”
