Hundreds of books donated during Du Quoin State Fair will go to students
DuQUOIN - Sept. 15, 2014. Lt. Governor Sheila Simon donated hundreds of books to Du Quoin Community Unit School District 300 today, bringing to a close a back-to-school book drive to promote literacy.
"Thanks to the generosity of so many people, students in Du Quoin are going to find their school library stocked with some brand new titles this year," Simon said. "I would like to thank all the people who donated, and to encourage the students to take advantage of it by getting lost in a good book."
Simon's office collected the books during the Du Quoin State Fair, which ran Aug. 22 to Sept. 1, and gathered books from fairgoers. The Lt. Governor's Office has worked directly with volunteers of the Illinois Reading Council's Illinois Reads program throughout the summer to promote books authored by Illinoisans, and to collect the new and gently-used children's books.
"At Du Quoin Elementary and Middle School, it's our goal to create a resource-rich library for all of our students and encourage them to become life-long readers," said Diana Rea, principal of Du Quoin Elementary School. "We sincerely thank Lieutenant Governor Sheila Simon and her office for the generous book donations provided to our libraries. We believe, over time, this donation will help hundreds of students improve their reading skills and increase their overall love of reading. Thank you so much for the considerate gift!"
"The Illinois Reading Council is proud to call Lt. Governor Simon an Illinois Reads ambassador. As such, she has helped us to promote reading all across the state," said Illinois Reading Council Past President Tammy Potts, committee chair for Illinois Reads. "With 36 titles by 36 Illinois authors, Illinois Reads has something for everyone, from read-alouds for babies, to interesting and thrilling books for students and seniors."
District 300 students will be getting plenty of use out of the books; as part of a year-long literacy program, students of the middle school are required to have a library book out at all times.
As an ambassador for Illinois Reads, Simon partnered with the Illinois Reading Council to hold the back-to-school book drive at her tents at the Springfield and Du Quoin State Fairs. Visitors could drop off new or gently used children's books, hear Illinois authors read from their works, and also register to win the 36 books selected for Illinois Reads 2014.
For more information about Illinois Reads, please visit www.illinoisreads.org.
###
