Posts in category Book Relief

Mary Pope Osborne and Random House Provide 4,000 New Books to Children in New Orleans

Apr23
2010 Written by Greg P.

Mary Pope Osborne reads to New Orleans school children.

Mary Pope Osborne, author of the popular children’s book series, Magic Tree House, and Random House Children’s Books teamed up with First Book to provide 4,000 books to children in need in 27 Recovery School District schools in New Orleans this month. On April 19th and 20th, Osborne visited with and read to children from six of the schools that received books. She also spoke about her enthusiasm for working with First Book and her inspiration for writing on WWLTV Eyewitness Morning News.

Ms. Osborne said, “Working with First Book in New Orleans was an inspiring adventure. Together we visited a number of schools and put new books into the hands of young readers. Our shared belief is that reading provides the path toward greater possibilities for the future — and every child deserves the opportunity to set out on the journey.”

Will Osborne, Marlene Pete (Treasurer, First Book-Greater New Orleans), Lynetta Rhodes (Co-Chair, First Book-Greater New Orleans) and Kyle Zimmer (President and CEO, First Book) cheer Mary Pope Osborne as she accepts a proclamation from the mayor in her honor.

Ms. Osborne donated new copies of Magic Tree House #42: A Good Night for Ghosts, in which Magic Tree House characters Jack and Annie travel back in time to meet a young boy named Louis Armstrong and encourage him to share his gift of music with the world.

Posted in Advisory Boards, Authors & Illustrators, First Book Events, Philanthropy - Tagged , , , , , ,

Coming Soon to New Orleans: Mary Pope Osborne and Random House

Apr14
2010 Written by Greg P.

Mary Pope Osborne, author of the wildly popular Magic Tree House series, and Random House Children’s Books are teaming up with First Book to provide 4,000 books to children in 27 Recovery District schools in New Orleans. On Monday and Tuesday of next week, Ms. Osborne will personally visit with and read to children from six of the schools that are receiving books.

In anticipation of the New Orleans Jazz Festival that begins later that week, Ms. Osborne and Random House will be donating new copies of Magic Tree House #42: A Good Night for Ghosts, in which Magic Tree House characters Jack and Annie travel back in time to meet a young unknown boy named Louis Armstrong and encourage him to share his gift of music with the world.

Mary Pope Osborne said, “When my husband Will and I visited New Orleans shortly after Katrina, we were tremendously moved and inspired by the spirit of the city and its people. New Orleans has always been one of our favorite cities in the world, and on that trip we promised all the kids we met that Jack and Annie would soon visit New Orleans in the Magic Tree House and have an adventure with a young Louis Armstrong. We are now very happy to share that adventure—and the magic of reading—with them.”

Check back next week to hear from Mary Pope Osborne herself!

Posted in Authors & Illustrators, First Book Events, Philanthropy - Tagged , , , , , ,

Book Relief: More than 5 Million Books to the Gulf Coast

Aug31
2007 Written by Lynda L.

On August 21, we wrapped up our two-year effort to bring five million new books to the communities impacted by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma. We not only met but exceeded our goal, with a total of more than 5.1 million books distributed!

We celebrated this accomplishment with an event at the New Orleans Public Library, where sixty students from Martin Behrman Charter Elementary School in New Orleans joined us, along with community members, local and national dignitaries, and representatives from some of our corporate and publishing partners — without whom we could not have made this happen!

From the moment we boarded the plane on Monday, I knew this would be a momentous occasion filled with lots of special moments. And I wasn’t wrong. The flight to Louisiana brought back some poignant memories for me and I’m sure for every First Book staffer who was able to make at least one visit to the Gulf Coast during the past two years.

Significant progress has been made in removing the blue tarps from the roofs of damaged homes that stood out like giant waves, greeting travelers as they approached the NOLA airport. The tarps are mostly gone now but unfortunately, it means the homes were demolished and the land cleared of rubble that more often than not included families’ hopes, dreams and lives that can never be replaced.

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The Coast Guard and First Book

May11
2007 Written by Clarissa P.

Many of our book distributions would not be possible without the help of the U.S. Coast Guard. As the signature charity of the Coast Guard, First Book relies on their warehouse space and volunteers to help us distribute millions of books to kids in need.

The Coast Guard worked with us on our New Orleans book distribution in March, and they recently issued this press release about the distribution — including some great photos from the warehouse.

You can learn more about our partnership with the Coast Guard on our website.

Posted in Book Distributions

A Book Relief Story

May09
2007 Written by Dr. Frances Weiler

Guest blogger Dr. Frances Weiler, is the principal of North Bay Elementary School in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

August 29, 2005 changed the world — at least it changed my world. My home, my school, and my community were essentially destroyed. Thousands of homes were swept away by the fury of Hurricane Katrina, and thousands more were damaged beyond repair.

Schools did not escape the destruction. Along with the forceful winds, Katrina swept ten feet of water over North Bay Elementary which knocked out exterior and interior walls, flooded all books, records and instructional materials, and left our school community in ruins. Those ruins are still in view every day. We can see it out the windows of our temporary classrooms; our school buses pass it as they transport our students to and from school. And destruction is still visible everywhere in our community.

Like Charles Dickens wrote, “it was the best of times; it was the worst of times.” August 29 was certainly our worst, and those days after August 29 were filled with many anxieties.

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Posted in Book Recipients, Guest Blog Posts

New Orleans Book Distribution

Apr09
2007 Written by Stephanie R.
Sign Reading: No Trespassing, Demolition. We Are Coming Back.

A sign in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, LA. View more photos from New Orleans on
First Book’s Flickr Page

I just got back from a week-long trip to New Orleans, and I don’t think I’ve come back the same person. The week was intense and my mind is racing with impressions of the place and the people I met.

I went to New Orleans with three coworkers to distribute 260,000 books for Book Relief, and counting this distribution we should be right at 4 million books now. First Book is the charitable partner of the US Coast Guard, so we spent the week in their warehouse on a Naval facility on the Mississippi River, and working alongside all those incredible people was an awesome experience.

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Posted in Book Distributions

Thank you, Kit!

Apr02
2007 Written by Katie B.
Kit is decorated with a feather boa and Mardi Gras beads at her going-away party.

Kit arrives at her surprise party.

It was with mixed emotions that the First Book staff gathered for a surprise farewell luncheon for our dear colleague, Kit Lunney. After four years at First Book, there was much to celebrate and reminisce over, through laughter and a few tears.

Kit has been instrumental in so many aspects of First Book’s work, but over the last two years, she has been the backbone of the Book Relief initiative — helping to lead the organization in our commitment to place 5 million new books back into the Gulf Coast region in the wake of the 2005 hurricanes.

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Posted in Around the First Book Office

First Book Appreciated in Louisiana

Jan23
2007 Written by Matthew W.

We recently received this email from a Recipient Group in Louisiana:

Hello Friends at First Book,

I just wanted to let you know how important First Book has been to those affected by Hurricane Katrina.

I was the Assistant Director in Plaquemines Parish La. where the eye of Katrina crossed over first. We lost our home and all our belongings. I have relocated to Rapides Parish
(Alexandria) La. where I was blessed to find a great job here at the library.

Rapides has received and distributed hundreds of First Books to evacuees and I have sent them back with my grandchildren when they returned to St. Bernard, La. (another area hit hard by Katrina). For a while after Katrina, these were the only books they had, having lost theirs in the storm.

I thought that you should know that the books are getting in to the hands of those who need them and that they are appreciated.

Sincerely,
Tammy DiBartolo
Youth Services Manager
Rapides Parish Library

Posted in Book Recipients

Book Relief Along the Gulf Coast

Dec20
2006 Written by Kit L.
Kids read their new books.

Anna and I just completed a four day, 750 mile, trip along the Gulf Coast for a series of meetings and events. As our flight left National Airport last week for the 2 ½ hour trip to Louis Armstrong Airport in New Orleans we were both nervous and excited about what we would find and learn during our trip.

Day 1 – Biloxi – From the Beau Rivage to Borders

The weather report was for brief showers that would dwindle toward evening. Two hours later, on I-10 somewhere near the Mississippi/Louisiana border in the midst of torrential rains, we began to question the accuracy of the report. We arrived in Biloxi with only minutes to spare. I dropped Anna at Borders in the Edgewater Mall and headed down Highway 90 to the Beau Rivage.

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Posted in Book Recipients

First Book… or First Video?

Oct04
2006 Written by Kevin M.
A TV/VCR box with a First Book sticker on it.

Here at the First Book office in Washington, D.C., we get a bit confused sometimes. You’ve heard all the terms before — Book Relief, National Book Bank, Literacy Site — and now there’s one more for you to remember: “Learning Libraries.” But wait… Learning Libraries don’t come with books? What’s going on here?

Two weeks ago, as part of our Book Relief initiative, we completed a distribution of nearly 1,800 Learning Libraries to groups on the Gulf coast that were affected by the 2005 hurricanes. Each Learning Library consisted of one TV/VCR (donated by Funai) and twenty educational videos (donated by Disney).

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Posted in Book Distributions
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