Share your love of books and support equity in literacy by sharing our GoFundMe Campaign and donating the cost of your favorite children’s book or whatever you can afford for our COVID-19 Rapid Response — every dollar helps.
Since the citywide shelter-in-place order on March 16th, the Children’s Book Project has continued to support the needs of our most vulnerable families – even when we had to close our own doors. Here’s how we’re responding in this moment:
- Within days we changed our operations model from client self-selection to staff delivery. As of May 1st, two part-time staff sorted and delivered 12,000 free books to 36 Bay Area sites serving our most vulnerable children.
- We distributed books at the meal distribution centers and emergency childcare facilities to make sure children have safe and easy access to books.
- We’re delivering books to public housing, public health clinics, school laptop distribution sites, homeless shelters, and organizations serving families.
- We’ve partnered with the San Francisco School District to include thousands of picture books in distance learning packets for pre K–2nd graders.
As we deliver thousands of books where they’re needed and can be safely distributed, we’re rapidly depleting our inventory. Our usual sources for donated books are also hard hit: businesses that host donation bins are shuttered, book drives canceled, and individual donations deferred. We urgently need to raise funds to buy books, especially picture books, early readers, and books in Spanish.
Together, let us continue to raise readers!