L to R: Matti, her aunt Susan, Miles, and Chandler, telling baseball fans all about Book Harvest!
By Matti Kauftheil, rising 10th grader and Book Harvest volunteer
Last week I volunteered with Book Harvest at a Durham Bulls baseball game. On that particular night, if you brought a book to donate, you got a free ticket to the game. We gathered over 1100 books! Before and during the game we had a booth set up to give out information, and we passed out stickers and bracelets to kids. It was incredible to see how many kids replied, “Yes” when asked if they enjoyed reading. One of my favorite moments was when a kid and his mother saw our table and the boy’s face immediately lit up. When they came over to the table, we discovered that he had received books through one of Book Harvest’s programs, Books on Break. Another special memory was when a toddler and his mom came over to the table to to inform us that they had taken part in another program that Book Harvest has, Book Babies. This was my first time volunteering with Book Harvest and I could already see how important its work is. My aunt, a volunteer at Book Harvest, introduced me to this organization. She knew that I loved to read and thought this would be an organization that would pique my interest; she was right! I really value the work that Book Harvest does to make sure every kid gets the opportunity to read. In fact, shortly after I finished volunteering I messaged some friends from school to set up a book drive for Book Harvest.
Volunteering with Book Harvest was an incredible experience and I cannot wait to do it again in the future. Next time, I hope to meet the kids who receive the books!