Blog

Kiwanis give the gift of books during their city’s annual holiday parade.

Every year during the holidays, the Greenville Kiwanis K-Kids and Kiwanis members distribute books along their city’s Christmas parade route. The Greenville Kiwanis Club, a community service organization, focuses specifically on fulfilling the needs of young children and their families. This is why every year during the city’s parade, the club gives away free books to attendees!

This year’s Christmas Light-Up Parade took place on Saturday, December 9th and over 800 books were distributed to children who attended the city’s event. Seventeen K-Kids and seven Kiwanis members volunteered for the event, which boasted about 600 attendees — well over 50 percent of the local community.

“Being a part of the parade was very amazing and so rewarding,” commented Jim Sherman, the president of the Greenville Kiwanis Club. Kiwanis volunteers handed out copies of:

• Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish
• Corduroy’s Christmas Surprise by Don Freeman
• Wake Up, Sun! by David L. Harrison
• Thomas and the School Trip by Rev. W. Awdry

In addition to those children’s books, the club also gave away a variety of Little Golden Books, picture books which are known for their sturdy covers, compact size, and affordable price tag:

• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by Rick Bunsen
• The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore
• The Animals’ Christmas Eve by Gale Wiersum
• Jingle Bells by Kathleen N. Daly and J. P. Miller
• Santa’s Toy Shop by Al Dempster
• Elmo’s 12 Days of Christmas by Sarah Albee and Maggie Swanson

This tradition of handing out books to parade attendees has been a part of the Greenville Kiwanis for 15 years. But, why books? “One of the Kiwanis' big movements is having the preschoolers start reading early,” explained Sherman.

Throughout the year, the Greenville Kiwanis run a variety of programs that support early childhood literacy. For example, the organization goes to local preschools and Sunday schools to hand out packets of books with bookmarks and handouts that show the Kiwanis’ support for early readers. The Kiwanis host barbecues, golf events, and much more to raise money for all their efforts, which range from acquiring books to give away during the Christmas parade to giving scholarships to graduating high school seniors and donating to local organizations that share their vision of supporting early childhood development and education.

It’s amazing to hear about what organizations are doing to support their local community and inspire a love for reading. Thank you for sharing your story with us, Jim!

Do you have a story to share with us? We'd love to hear it! Leave a comment below and tell us about what you're doing with the books you've purchased from BookPal.

This post was written by Elizabeth Lee, the marketing manager at BookPal. She is currently reading Onward by Howard Schultz and The Evil Hours by David J. Morris.