1200 Books
. . . and now the fun begins!
by WindwardSeptember 28, 2005
It all started when my Mom got Influenza, and while captive and bored in the Doctor’s waiting room, she spied a book with a sticker on the front…
At the time, I was finishing up my Freshman year at a small technology-enriched High School started by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (yes, the Microsoft Gates’). An important part of our High School is the “Connecting School & Community Initiative”. There is some money available, and students are encouraged to write Grant proposals to fund projects that would positively impact both the school and the community. My Mom and I started talking about how cool it would be to blanket our area with free books supplied through the school. If each student and teacher could release just a few books, we could monitor the progress and hopefully watch our books spread out throughout the County and beyond. We started by gathering all our extra books – over 400 (funny, our bookcases are still overflowing!), and then friends, co-workers and family members got in the act. A post on the Book Wish List forum brought in RABCK offers and an outpouring of books. (I have all of the generous people who contributed listed on my bookshelf). This morning we received book number 1200, my original goal for the project.
In the near future, I’ll enlist the student body to start releasing the books and the fun will begin! Look for another BC article at the end of the school year on our release successes, statistics, and hopefully new BookCrossers who have joined due to the project!
At the time, I was finishing up my Freshman year at a small technology-enriched High School started by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (yes, the Microsoft Gates’). An important part of our High School is the “Connecting School & Community Initiative”. There is some money available, and students are encouraged to write Grant proposals to fund projects that would positively impact both the school and the community. My Mom and I started talking about how cool it would be to blanket our area with free books supplied through the school. If each student and teacher could release just a few books, we could monitor the progress and hopefully watch our books spread out throughout the County and beyond. We started by gathering all our extra books – over 400 (funny, our bookcases are still overflowing!), and then friends, co-workers and family members got in the act. A post on the Book Wish List forum brought in RABCK offers and an outpouring of books. (I have all of the generous people who contributed listed on my bookshelf). This morning we received book number 1200, my original goal for the project.
In the near future, I’ll enlist the student body to start releasing the books and the fun will begin! Look for another BC article at the end of the school year on our release successes, statistics, and hopefully new BookCrossers who have joined due to the project!
