With more than 2,000 books donated and more than 30 volunteers who helped make it possible, the United Way of St. Charles (UW) is already planning its next book swap.
“We are proud that our first annual Children’s Book Swap was so well received by the community. The positive energy from the local authors, library representatives, and, of course, volunteers definitely contributed to the success of the event,” said Kelsey Matthews, UW volunteer coordinator.
Plans are to continue growing the swap with the continuing goal of keeping children engaged in summer reading, Matthews said.
Held June 20 at the UW office in Luling, the organization’s first book swap was weeks in the planning.
Volunteers included representatives from St. Charles Parish 4-H clubs and Monsanto.
“As a partner in industry, United Way board member, volunteer at the event and parent, I was very excited to see the community respond with the huge volume of donated books and the high level of engagement by the children and their parents,” said Shloe Jeffery, human resource lead at Monsanto’s Luling plant. “The opportunity to remain engaged in reading throughout the summer is such a gift for all of our children. As always, the United Way of St. Charles team did an excellent job of organizing the event.”
The swap also featured hands-on activities, including bookmark making, story time, a photo station and free snowballs. Local sci-fi author Lee Stephen of Luling was also in attendance answering questions about how he became a writer.
According to Stephen, “It was amazing to see so many kids so excited about picking out books. There are so many things today vying for kids’ attentions, but reading will always be something special. This was a great event from start to finish, and I’m so glad I got to be a part of it.”
The first 100 children received a free, signed copy of “Beaux the Blue Crawfish” written by local author Wendy Cartozzo, who also served as the special guest story time reader for the event.
Representatives from the St. Charles Parish Public Library were also on hand to sign up children for library cards, register families for the summer reading program and teach individuals how to access the various electronic resources available for free with their library membership.
“We loved being a part of the Children’s Book Swap,” said Lauren Campo Pitz, library public relations and adult programming librarian. “We were able to connect with readers, discuss the importance of reading as a family, and explain how participating in the St. Charles Parish Library’s summer reading program can help maintain reading skills over the summer. It was great seeing so many people excited about reading.”
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