barbara would be proud
Cherished former first lady's bookish Houston charity marks major milestone
As locals prepare to observe Giving Tuesday, a cherished Houston foundation is celebrating a new milestone. The Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation announced that it has distributed more than 12,500 personal libraries to underserved families students spanning some 27 schools.
Dubbed “My Home Libraries,” the 12,500 collections have been gifted to families in districts including Houston ISD, Goose Greek ISD, and Spring Branch ISD, according to a press release.
“Due to the vast disruption of the pandemic on our education system and to families, access to books in the home is more vital now than ever before,” said Dr. Julie Baker Finck, Barbara Bush Houston Literacy Foundation president, in a statement. “The Foundation is pleased to have partnered with incredible school leaders and generous donors to empower thousands of children with books just in time for the holidays to educate, inspire and entertain them through our My Home Library program.”
This gifting of more than 62,500 books comes courtesy of more than a dozen sponsors, along with the foundation’s Ladies for Literacy Guild and Young Professionals Group, and comes at a time when myriad libraries and schools have been closed due to the pandemic. In total, the foundation has delivered 78,000 home libraries to local children, totaling nearly 200,000 new books for needy kids. The cause was dear to beloved former first lady, Barbara Bush, who championed literacy.
The My Home Library program uses a web-based tool that provides books to economically disadvantaged children. Through the platform, students can create a wish list of books for their very own home library; the community can then sponsor a child’s home library of six books via a $30 tax-deductible donation.
Houstonians who are interested in supporting the foundation’s efforts can visit the My Home Library site.
