Teacher Jodi Hughes, top left, with K-Kids at Piñon Elementary School who are helping others through collecting children’s books for libraries in Africa. Courtesy/Kiwanis
Chamisa K-Kids with boxes of books collected for the African Library Project. Courtesy/Kiwanis
Aspen K-Kids count money collected for the African Library Project. Courtesy/Kiwanis
Barranca K-Kids who worked to collect books for the African Library Project. Courtesy/Kiwanis
By BROOKE DAVIS
Kiwanis Club of Los Alamos
This is the 8th year that books have been collected to create libraries for children in Africa through the African Library Project (www.africanlibraryproject.org).
To date, 125 libraries of 1,200 books each have been sent from the Los Alamos community. Kiwanis sponsored K-Kids clubs at Barranca, Aspen and Pinon schools held book drives to collect children’s books in good condition during September and October. Each club was matched up with and received information about a school in Kenya.
Student clubs were responsible for sorting and packing books, making bookmarks and posters, writing personal notes to include in the boxes, and (with help from sponsors, Kiwanians and LAHS Key Club) hauling boxes to the post office for shipping. In total, 79 boxes containing 6,175 books were shipped.
Two-thirds of the more than $3,000 shipping cost was provided by student clubs. They raised the money by selling green and gold bead necklaces for the high school homecoming parade, selling See’s lollipops, and asking families and school staff to “adopt a box”. We were able to ship an extra 12 boxes of books, the equivalent of one full library, to help other organizations that may not have been able to collect a full library for their African school.
The students did a great job and are grateful to the Los Alamos community for their continuing generosity in donating books!
We expect to ship three to four more libraries, this time to Malawi and Ghana, in the spring of 2025 with help from our LAMS Builders Club and our newest K-Kids Club at Mountain School.
Donations to offset shipping costs are always appreciated.
Barranca K-Kids pack boxes of children’s books for the African Library Project. Courtesy/Kiwanis
Piñon K-Kids create bookmarks for the African Library Project. Courtesy/Kiwanis
Chamisa K-Kids who have collected children’s books for libraries in Africa. Courtesy/Kiwanis
Aspen K-Kids record the books they’ve collected for the African Library Project. Courtesy/Kiwanis