Photos have been removed from this issue because of a law in Kenya requiring strict documentation for photos and videos featuring school children.
QUOTE OF THE MONTH "Those who can see the invisible can do the impossible."
- Albert Einstein
Changing The World One Mind at a Time
Greetings! Here is the April 2021 issue of the Libraries For Kids, Int'l monthly e-newsletter. Thanks for your interest and support. Kuwa mwema na wasaidie kujifunza (Be kind and help them learn)
- Roy Austin, Founder/Chair
- EVERYTHING IS FIGUREOUTABLE
- Great book by Marie Foleo
- Boosting Performance
We have made amazing progress in a short period of time. We will be 2 years old on May 10. We've delivered a lot of books to a lot of schools. But is it making a difference? Here is a report from Wanjiku Francis, our Operations Coordinator in Kenya. She has been receiving reports from teachers. This is one of many stories.
The Headteacher Katundu Primary School expressed her joy in a text where she summarized the performance of her learners. The highest boy and girl had 365 and 373 respectively with the lowest student scoring 236 marks. More than 30 pupils had 300 and hence all are qualified to join county and intercountry schools. It’s a big deal for a rural school to record such an outstanding performance considering the hardships posed by environmental settings. The mean score in the school was 324 indicating that even the 5 students who scored less than 300 marks have a chance to secure positions in the district schools. Talking to the Operations Coordinator via text message Madam Florence Mbuve thanked God for the excellent results and LFK for their support.
Right before COVID-19 hit Kenya in March, LFK shipped three boxes to the school and also send them funds to buy more books based on their immediate needs and Kenyan curriculum. The teacher, together with the parents invested the money wisely and the results are evident! Thanks to the books from LFK Int’l, students in Katundu Primary School were motivated to hold discussion groups regularly at the school compound, borrow the new books, and learn as much as possible during the time the schools had closed countrywide.
More books will help the school further rise up the ladder and manage to send their best students to the national schools which only admit students who have scored 400+ in the national examinations.
IN THE NEWS
WTOC TV in Savannah GA just did this story about Libraries For Kids, Int'l. WTOC TV ______________________________________
GOAL: 1 MILLION CHILDREN
The 8 containers we are shipping will create libraries in 1,600 schools impacting the lives of 240,000 children. But this is just the start. There are over 6,700 rural schools in Kenya with little or no internet or electricity. On average there are 150 students per school so that calculates to over 1 million children that you can help get an education and have a better life.
Watch JJ, age 5 learning to read. He's not old enough to go to school yet. So cute. His mother is our Operations Coordinator, Wanjiku Francis.
1 %
Less than 1 % of the donations we receive go to pay for administrative expenses. As we grow this will probably increase but we do everything we can to minimize administrative expenses. Our financial statements are available upon request. We do not give "gifts" in exchange for donations. Why? Because we want all of your gift to go towards getting books in the hands of children. Besides, who needs another t-shirt or coffee mug.
SCHOOL OF THE MONTH
KONGONI PRIMARY SCHOOL
Here is an email from Headteacher Lorinah Mwabili about the impact on her school.
From: Lorinah Mwabili Sent: Tuesday, March 3, 2020 3:47 AM To: libraries4kids <books@libraries4kids.org> Subject: Video from Lorinah Mwabili
Kongoni community humbly thank Library 4 kids for the donation of books and money to cater for course books in school. parents pupils teachers are very happy eduction standard will really improve. Roy through madam Wanjiku you've really touched our souls we still need more books and a library room for storing books safely since kongoni is a new school. in the school some of the classes share one room.
Click HERE for a 3 second video of the kids with their new books.
Here are pictures of the children with their new books.
TESTIMONIAL
Annette Chari reports improved performance due to the books we sent them. From: Annette Chari Sent: Sunday, April 18, 2021 7:50 AM To: Roy <books@libraries4kids.org> Subject: Re: More Than Expected
Hallo,let me take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to this organization ,last year we received books and cash of which we purchased more story books and revision materials ,this has helped our school to record great improvement in our school performance ,the school recorded a positive deviation of 25 ,which is great .On behalf of the school fraternity I say thank you and God bless u as you continue supporting our schools and others l
Smile.Amazon For Kids
You can support Libraries For Kids, Int'l with your Amazon purchases. It's easy.
Set up an account at Smile.Amazon.com. It is the same as a regular Amazon account except that you have the option to designate a charity. Please designate Libraries For Kids, Intl. Amazon will donate 0.5% of your purchase to your charity. The donation comes from Amazon, not you. When you place an order, login to Smile.Amazon and proceed as you normally would with any other Amazon purchase. Thanks for your help. PS - For more information about Libraries For Kids, Int'l visit our website or contact Roy Austin at books@libraries4kids.org or phone him at 843-597- 4826.
HELP: Please donate so we can get the books to the schools once they arrive in Kenya.
Please contribute $35 to get books to a school.
We've come so far and cleared so many hurdles. Please help us clear this next hurdle and get the books delivered to the schools.
"We've each been given a bag of tools, a formless rock, and a book of rules. And each must make ere life is flown, a stumbling block or a stepping stone."
Walt Whitman
CONTAINER DISTRIBUTION UPDATE
Right now Nairobi and the counties around Nairobi are in Covid-19 lockdown. This means we cannot deliver the books from the container to schools. They are not sure how long the lockdown will last but possibly well into May.
When the containers arrive the books are unpacked and all are stamped with our logo and the tag "Not For Sale." This is a very labor intensive effort but necessary to comply with Kenyan government regulations and assure that we are not importing and selling books. Here is a short video of the stamping process.
Setting up for the stamping process.
Books in our warehouse in Kitui, Kenya
One of the children who volunteered to help with the unloading and stamping process takes a break to do a little reading.
Warehouse before the books are unpacked.
SPREAD THE WORD
Please, spread the word by forwarding this email to your friends and contacts, or posting excerpts from this newsletter, or our website, (copy/paste) on your social media accounts.
Together we can make a huge difference in the lives of thousands of children.
Lavington Jioni Rotary Club We are excited to report that we have partnered with the Lavington Jioni Rotary Club in Nairobi, Kenya. They will be assisting us with receipt, stamping, repacking, anddelivering the container books to schools.
https://www.facebook.com/rotarycluboflavingtonjioni/
What does your donation accomplish?
Libraries For Kids, Int'l offers not a handout, but a hand up. Parents in rural Kenya pay tuition for their children to go to school. It is a huge sacrifice when your income is derived from a subsistence farm or your herd of sheep, goats, or cattle. But it is a testament to their hunger for knowledge.
The Kenyan government gives each rural school $5.50 per student per year. For a school with a student population of 100 that is $550.00 per year to pay for the schools expenses (teacher salaries, textbooks, supplies, etc.) As a result, textbooks and libraries are lacking.
How can people lift themselves up and solve their problems without knowledge?
Your donations are helping children in Kenya, and hopefully someday other countries, to help themselves.
I hope you will consider Libraries For Kids, Int'l.
Media Attention
WTOC TV
Please share these stories with your friends and on your social media platforms. Thanks
For more news about Libraries For Kids, Int'l visit our website
SPEAKING
We love telling the Libraries For Kids, Int'l story. If your organization needs a speaker please contact us at books@libraries4kids.org or phone us at 843-597-4826. Whether in person or via Zoom, we look forward to sharing our story.
Donor Honor Roll
Our Donor Honor Roll is based on cumulative contributions. No matter what level you are on, you are important. But your continuing support is also vital. We hope you will continue to contribute and gradually move to a higher level on the honor roll. A little each month and you will soon be at the next level. You can now set up a monthly donation HERE. You can also make a tribute gift in honor or memory of someone. There are a lot of new names on the honor roll this month and several people who have moved up to the next level.
So far we have received donations from 215 people or organizations located in:
Five Countries: Australia, France, Kenya, Northern Mariana Islands, USA 29 States: AK, AL, CA, CO, FL, GA, IA, IN, IL, KS, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NM, OH, OK, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA, WI
Click Here to see the full donor Honor Roll
Here are the different honor roll levels and who is on each level. The Swahili word is in parenthesis.
Meerkat (Meerkat)
Donated books and/or money.
So far there are 123 Meerkats. Click here [to see them all. Some of](/about/honor-roll/) you are close to the Zebra level so please consider an additional donation.
Zebra (Punda Milia) - $100 or more
To date there are 67 Zebras. Click here to see them all
Impala (Pala) - $500 or more Delores Ackerman Anonymous Benton Bowen Kirk Fox Jim & Karen Ralston Gary Shepard Rick & Cindy Jacobs Susan Kreick
Giraffe (Twiga) - $1,000 or more Den & Jan Austin Charleston CFO Council Ed & Betty Eich Mickaylla McDonald JR & Betty Rutherford
Janice Allinder-Anestes Ty & Suzanne Giesemann
Oryx (Choroa)- $2,500 or more
Marilyn Moore Steve & Ruth Dexter
Rhinoceros (Kifaru): $5,000 or more
Sable Antelope (Mfano Mzuri): $7,500 or more
Cheetah (Duma): $10,000 or more
Rick & Becky Harris
Leopard (Chui) - $25,000 or more
Dr. David Stallings
Lion (Simba) - $50,000 or more
Roy & Sharron Austin
Elephant (Tembo) - $100,000 or more
Maasai Club - $250,000 or more
The Maasai are among the foremost African ethnic groups and are known internationally because of their links to the national parks and reserves. They respect the land and are adapting to the changing world around them.
Sharron Austin Society - $500,000 or more
Sharron was an inspiration to Libraries For Kids, Int’l Founder Roy Austin. Her life philosophy was “Life is not the way it is supposed to be. It is the way it is. How you cope with it is what makes the difference.” Her smile, positive attitude, and ability to overcome numerous challenges in her life are an inspiration to all. She died on March 29, 2020. She is sorely missed but her spirit lives on. She was an enthusiastic supporter and donor to Libraries For Kids, Int’l.
MEET OUR PARTNERS
We are blessed to have several partners who have donated their time and services. Paul Soviero, Owner, Next Move HHI is helped us find bookcases for our storage location. http://www.nexmovehhi.com/index.php
James Worix, owner of Worix Media is helping us with IT and media editing services.
Paul Uhls BNC Graphics 19 Seventh Ave, Bluffton, South Carolina 29910 https://bncgraphics.com/
Supplied business cards and rack cards
Dan Russin Store Manager Morningstar Storage 1110 Fording Island Rd Bluffton, SC 29910
Donated a 10ft x 10ft space for us to store books.
Allison Debs Lewis Territory Account Manager Staples Advantage www.staplesadvantage.com
Staples has donated shipping boxes.
Alan Flowers and Roman Surroundings are helping us spread the word about Libraries For Kids, Int'l. 70 Pennington Dr. Studio 16D Bluffton, SC 29910 The Stations call-in # 843-800-1492; Office # 843-
505-8513 https://www.talkoneradio.com/
