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Hard to believe that I am sending another newsletter about a fire and READ within 3 months of the Book Bus fire, but here we are.
I’m feeling lots of feels right now -shock, overwhelmed, exhaustion, doubt- but the dominating feeling is gratefulness. When I arrived at the Book Nook at 9:20, although no books had been damaged, I was strongly encouraged to get as many books out as soon as I could due to building structure concerns. By 10am, volunteers began to arrive and continued to throughout the day. By 2:30 pm, over 5,000 books were boxed, labeled, and placed in a pod. Thank you to all who came to help!!! We could not have done it without YOU! I’m overwhelmed by your generosity of time and spirit.
Now on to our next task. As you know, I am a big believer in sharing with this community what READ needs to be successful because you just never know whom you may know. READ needs to find a new home as soon as possible in order to keep our commitments to fall book fairs, our greatest source of revenue to get new books to vulnerable babies and young children.
I’m really not sure how finding space works, but I’m hoping maybe one of you do or knows someone who does. We need a space:
1) That is at least 600—800 square feet, either retail or warehouse,
2) Has the amenities to roll a dolly filled with book boxes and library carts to load on the Book Bus (such as, a ramp, elevator, or loading dock),
3) Temperature-controlled to protect books, and
4) Incredibly cost-efficient (maybe a tax write off for someone?).
I'll end with one more request. Please send positive thoughts, energy, vibes, prayers to the Mount Olivet community. Rebuilding after a fire is a hard, often long journey.
You learn more about the fire here.
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