Storybridge held its third annual “Dream and Donate” children’s book drive event starting Saturday afternoon at United Supermarkets on Bell Street to make books accessible to area children.
The event, typically held earlier in January to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of providing children with access to education, was postponed to later in the month due to severe winter temperatures.
Started as a grassroots effort to improve literacy across the Texas Panhandle by giving children better access to books, Storybridge has put more than 260,000 books into children’s hands through its programs.
Chandra Perkins, founder and executive director of Storybridge, spoke about the event and its importance for children in the area. Last year’s event brought in about 9,000 books for the program.
“These books go fast; we distribute about 8,000 books monthly,” Perkins said. “This weekend, we are trying to get about 10,000 books, and I think we will blow past that number.”
Emphasizing that starting children in reading early on is the key, Perkins said that is where the program seeks to create enthusiasm for them.