…except she didn’t have to saw the lock off.
There I was at the U-Haul storage facility, when Jackie lifted the tambour door, and my eyes took in all she had to offer.
Boxes and boxes of books- lovely, pristine books, classic titles, new reads, old favorites.
In the span of an hour or so, I loaded all of these valuable books into my car. As I drove away, I kept thinking, “What a jackpot!”.
Now, weeks later, some of picture books are en route to Ghana and Uganda. Others are earmarked for Zambia, as well as our local students in Crystal Lake and McHenry.
Thank you, Jackie!

Blog Post by Pat Kelly

By Kalan Gott

I love when someone stops me and says, “Hey, I just read this great book about …want to read it?” Since I am usually looking for something great to read, I accept and the cycle begins. It is like the movie “Pay It Forward”, but with books instead of acts of kindness. That one book offered to me is now passed from one person to the next spreading the culture of reading. Even more exciting, each person that reads that book talks about it! Those moments when people excitedly share their favorite parts of the story: what surprised them, made them curious, when they got mad, when they got excited, how they connected to the characters, and how they got lost in that author’s world. If we all keep paying it forward through books think about how many lives we can touch, how many children we can inspire, and how many books we can discover. Next time you read a great book don’t forget to pay it forward!

Thanks to the fine folks who participated in Matt’s Tavern’s Spoker Run today. The money raised will help us create book bags for our local literacy project to increase home literacy awareness as well as help pay for a shipment of books to a school in Ghana.

A very big thank you to Matt’s Tavern for choosing A to Z Literacy Movement as the recipient of their fundraiser. It was a perfect day for the 13th annual Spoker Run as folks rode around town enjoying the sunny afternoon. We are so grateful to the people who believe in our mission and came out to support literacy here in McHenry county and across the globe.

Don’t forget, A to Z friends, tomorrow is the Spoker Run. Matt’s Tavern is hosting their annual fundraiser at 11:00 and proceeds will benefit A to Z Literacy Movement. Get yourself and your bike to Matt’s to sign up for the eight mile bike ride. It’s going to be gorgeous tomorrow – what a great way to spend the day!
We are moving forward with our 2013 goals, prepping eighteen boxes of children’s books to be shipped to Ghana as well as working on our local literacy projects in Crystal Lake and McHenry.
As always, thank you for believing in our mission, helping us to move forward in literacy, and getting books into kids’ hands.

Before summer ends and school begins, won’t you please consider getting on your bicycle (or borrowing one) for an 8 mile bike ride benefiting a great cause – A to Z Literacy Movement – http://www.atozliteracy.org
This Sunday, August 25th, at 11:00, Matt’s Tavern is hosting their annual Spoker Run. You can register the day of the event at Matt’s, and for $25, you get a cool t-shirt, raffle tickets, and fun times with family and friends.
Proceeds from the Spoker Run will help A to Z Literacy Movement meet our 2013 goals and kick start another local literacy project with kids in McHenry county.

As summer winds down and the upcoming school year approaches, A to Z Literacy wants to get more books shipped and into the hands of impoverished kids in Zambia as well as students here in McHenry county.

Please consider joining us on Sunday, August 25th, at 11:00 at Matt’s Tavern in Crystal Lake for their annual Spoker Run. Proceeds from the event will benefit A to Z Literacy Movement this year. The cost of the ride is $25 which includes a cool T-shirt and raffle tickets. Feel free to sign up ahead of time at Matt’s.

Get a group of friends together to spend a couple of hours in the sun, enjoying the afternoon, while helping us meet our 2013 goals to increase literacy. The leisurely eight mile ride begins at Matt’s, travels around Crystal Lake, and finishes back at Matt’s Tavern.  It’s sure to be a fun-filled day.

By Anastasia Gruper

Daniella, Claudia, Jenny, and I congregated at the Garden Quarter with an incredible book on the Rebecca Caudill list this year: How They Croaked. Pocahontas and Julius Caesar were the chosen people today. Using our background knowledge, which consisted much of the Disney movie, we told the beautiful love story of Princess Pocahontas and John Smith. We smiled as we recalled the beautiful tale, and what a tale it was. In truth, Pocahontas was kidnapped at age 17 and forced to marry John Rolfe, a man who merely wanted her land to grow his tobacco crop. In an effort to make Pocahontas civilized, Rolfe brought her back to England where she contracted tuberculosis or pneumonia and died at aged 21 due to his lack of seeking medical attention. Claudia said it best, “It sounds like he was the uncivilized one.” Jenny was late to join our group, so we all listened closely as Daniella summarized and retold the story. Of course, Claudia was eager to jump in with details when she could. A great discussion followed about how uncivilized settlers were to the Native Americans when they came to the states.

As we moved on to Julius Caesar, Claudia recalled learning about him inventing the calendar. We all predicted how he died based on the picture. Although we all guessed he was stabbed, we had no idea how gruesome and gory the mass stabbing from the greedy senators would be. Daniella said it best, “All those guys died within a year; it sounds like they created their own bad luck.” We also discussed how a nice dictator was an oxymoron, but perhaps that’s what Julius was. As Daniella said, “He left his garden to the people and he left every citizen money in his will.”

As Mal drove us home today, we reflected on how the story boost went today. I don’t think I articulated it well in the car. However, sitting at home reflecting on the experience makes me realize what an incredible experience it was. I learned so much today. Thanks A to Z, Garden Quarter, but most of all, thanks Daniella, Claudia and Jenny!