Virtual book drive lets everyone participate in world record

Rotary International News - 15 May 2008

Rotarians heading to the 2008 RI Convention in Los Angeles next month are urged to bring one or several books in the language of their choice for Rotary’s Wide World of Books, a commemorative project of the LA2008 Convention Host Organization aimed at boosting literacy among local schoolchildren. Those who want to be a part of this global literacy initiative but aren’t able to attend the convention, can still help by making a virtual donation.

Scholastic, the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, has partnered with Rotary’s Wide World of Books and Reading by 9 to provide great books at low cost to Rotary clubs. Scholastic will ship the books free of charge to Los Angeles. Books must be ordered before 1 June to be included in the project. Learn how to order.“Literacy is crucial in determining a person’s overall academic, professional, and personal success,” says Ingo Werk, chair of the initiative and past governor of District 5280.

Werk hopes the initiative will set a Guinness World Record for the largest international book drive. A “mountain” of donated books will be on display in the atrium of the Los Angeles Convention Center. This achievement will be certified at the convention, says Werk.

Since 2000, a number of Southern California clubs have participated in Reading by 9, a multiyear campaign established by the Los Angeles Times that helps students in kindergarten through third grade read at grade level by the age of nine.

After the convention, the books will be distributed to schoolchildren living in the geographic area of the seven hosting Rotary districts, which cover parts of Southern California and Southern Nevada.