BELLEFONTE — Year nine is in the books, so to speak.
Bellefonte READS was held earlier this month and was a huge success once again. Over the course of two hours, more than 360 bags of books were distributed. All told, more than 1,200 books were given out to Bellefonte students and their families.
Jackie Wynkoop, a Bellefonte Area School District instructional coach and co-chair of the Bellefonte READS Committee, said the program would not be successful if it didn’t have such a great support staff.
“We have a dedicated committee that helps plan our events. We also have an incredibly generous community,” Wynkoop said.
While there is a cost involved, Wynkoop said that funding the program is never an issue.
“Many businesses and organizations contribute funds that go toward the purchase of books. It wouldn’t be possible without them,” Wynkoop said.
Wynkoop’s co-chair is BASD’s Nicole Kohlhepp. There were also 15 volunteers — including five students — who assisted with distribution. Those volunteers helped hand out the more than 1,200 books.
Over the course of the program, Wynkoop said the accumulated numbers speak volumes.
“In just nine years, our committee has raised over $60,000 and given away over 11,000 new books to our community,” Wynkoop explained.
There were plenty of great books to choose from this year, but Kohlhepp said that the most popular was a cookbook.
“’Heirloom Kitchen’ was the most popular. So popular, in fact, that about half of the families that requested the book didn’t receive it. We simply ran out of money, as the cookbook was pretty expensive,” Kohlhepp said.
She said that Bellefonte READS was created nearly a decade ago to help fill a void.
“We noticed a lack of community engagement with reading. We wanted to bring some book love back to the community. We know how important book access is to a child’s future, so we were committed to the mission of putting quality books in the hands of children and families,” Kohlhepp said.
Next up for Bellefonte READS is Community Literacy Night on March 9.
“We’re excited to bring back an in-person celebration after two years off due to COVID,” Wynkoop said.
For more information about Bellefonte READS, visit www.basd.net or check out Bellefonte Reads on Facebook.
