| May 2011-Readiatrics Book Drive |
|
Most of us can look back and remember a favorite book we had as a kid.But not everyone has that memory. That's where the Readiatrics Book Drive comes in. They are Committed to Kids. There's not much room left in Darla and Don Lerdal's basement, and certainly not much room left in the van. But that's a good thing. This is their eleventh year running the Readiatrics Book Drive in Rapid City. It started with a simple idea, get books in the hands of kids who want and need them.
Darla Drew Lerdal says, "I said I knew plenty of people who had books and they were in their basements or garages, whatever, books their children had outgrown. And I asked the hospital if they would take used book and they said certainly. That's kind of how it got started. I knew plenty of people who had books that were waiting patiently in their children's bedrooms and that child was in college." Since they got started, Darla guesses they've collected or bought and distributed a hundred thousand books. Some are gently used, some are new and some have a specific purpose. Lerdal says, "Sometimes people just want to donate money. And with that money, I buy books that are not usually available during the book drive, books of cultural relevance that depict American Indian families, Hispanic, African American, children with disabilities or from homes that are not nuclear families. Maybe children are being raised by their grandparents, something like that." While Darla and Don have been the drive behind the drive from the start, she says they've had plenty of help from both businesses and individuals. And all that work comes down to one simple thing. Lerdal says, "We just do it as a labor of love for the community. It just makes us feel go. We don't usually see the children we help. But we know it's going to those kids who need it, build literacy in the home. If we say reading is important, but there's no books in the home, this is our way to make sure that resource is available." Black Hills FOX salutes the Readiatrics Book Drive, committed to Kids. This year's drive is coming to an end at the end of this week, but you can still donate. If you want more information on how you can help, go to their website at www.readiatrics.com or Darla says you can giver her a call at 341-5940. Jack Caudill |
