by Daniele Berman, Operations Manager
Our new office—the one that felt cavernous and overwhelmingly large just a few months ago—has quickly been filling with exciting evidence of Book Harvest’s growth, first with the influx of over 25,000 books donated at our Dream Big Book Drive on MLK Day in January, and now with two new staff members! Ginger, Natasha, and I could not be more excited to welcome Rachel Stine and Kenitra Williams to our team. We hope you’ll stop by and meet them in person soon, but in the meantime, say hello to Rachel and Kenitra!
Rachel Stine is our new full time partnerships manager. Originally from Los Angeles, Rachel, her husband Nat, and their sons Caleb (12) and Levi (10) have called Durham home for 14 years. “Ever since I was a young child, books have been an important part of my life,” explains Rachel. “I’m so happy and thankful to play a role in making this happen for all kids.” In fact, Rachel’s favorite children’s books are those she remembers from her childhood, especially The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams, which her father used to read to her, and her tattered and torn copy of Quick as a Cricket by Don and Audrey Wood, which she remembers reading to her younger brother when she was a child, the students in her classroom when she was a teacher, and her own sons when they were younger. Even as an adult, Rachel is a lover of books, and she’s currently thoroughly enjoying The One Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson.
Kenitra Williams is our new part time Book Babies team member. She also works full time as an interventionist with the Mothers and Others Program, which is part of the Center for Women’s Health Research at the UNC School of Medicine. Kenitra moved from Oklahoma 16 years ago and calls Durham home, along with her husband Kendrick and daughters DaiChavon (21), Mecca (11), and Dima (7). Kenitra is most excited to be working at Book Harvest, she says, because she loves books and loves babies, “and Book Babies brings them together!” Her current favorite children’s book, which she discovered as an adult, is Nappy Hair by Carolivia Herron, and as far as adult literature, she’s currently reading The Paper Magician by Charlie Holmberg.
We know that adding Rachel and Kenitra to our team is going to enable us to reach more children more effectively, and we are thrilled that they have chosen to contribute their time and incredible talents to the important work we’re doing to eliminate the income-based book gap in the Triangle. Welcome, Rachel and Kenitra!