Literacy Builds Community
Contibuted by Miranda Ericksen, BookGive volunteer
I began volunteering at BookGive in January 2021, when along with so many others, I was desperate for a renewed sense of community. After being isolated forEVER, I was lonely and depressed. I found myself longing for a way to connect with others.
That was my personal state as I walked into the service station that January day. Melissa Monforti, BookGive’s executive director, welcomed me with enthusiasm. She put me to work boxing up five hundred books for the Denver Rescue Mission. I met other book-loving folks dedicating their time to make books available to those who need them. After the three-hour shift, I felt renewed, excited and fulfilled – and part of something that matters.
This sense of community is what keeps programs like BookGive overflowing with volunteers. If you’re a volunteer, you know how hard it can be to snag a shift. It’s a testament to the strong community and level of commitment Melissa and BookGive bring to Denver Metro readers. And it’s the energy behind our new tagline: Literacy Builds Community.
Whether it is through book give-aways, unique wine + book pairing events, craft classes or the new Free Book Room, BookGive has always put community at the center.
At the “Already Open Grand Opening,” Melissa talked about how sharing stories can create magic by bringing people together. As an introvert, events that have any sense of “stranger danger” or the dreaded networking, make me want to dive straight into a book, curled up with my dog and a nice hot cup of coffee. However, when my fellow attendees at the event started asking me “what are you reading?” or “what’s your genre?”, my little introvert heart decided it was safe and time to PLAY! I had so much fun connecting with strangers over books we enjoyed, or in one passionate case, did not enjoy.
Recently, we launched the Reading In Color Little Free Library initiative placing ten book sharing boxes around Denver metro. I attended the big launch party at Park Hill Station Apartments. An entire community of residents came together to celebrate their renewed ability to access books, books that represent their diversity and their stories. Watching all of the residents come together, sharing food and books, then seeing the small kiddos come to life during Nyasha Williams’ reading, I was struck by how powerful the love of people and the love of reading can be.
At the Back-to-School Book Give-Away in August, I was delighted when I finally convinced a woman that yes, the books are free and yes, she could take as many as she wanted. She was absolutely dumbfounded that we would be giving away something so valuable. She politely took 2 books and was smiling from ear-to-ear.
Every month, BookGive sponsors the Well-Read Black Girl Book Club, hosted by Anya Dickson-Arguello. If you questions that literacy builds community, here’s proof. Here’s what participants say:
*It’s creating a space of belonging for me while sharing my love of reading with others.
*It makes me feel safe and I love the value it brings to my life.
*I value dearly this space as it’s one, if not the only space I have at the moment that welcomes my full being.
*It means a lot to speak to other women of color about different books and how they affect our different perspectives.
*Gathering with other womxn of Color, through the Well-Read Black Girl Book Club, gives me space to breathe and to bring my authentic self to the space.
Although its been a complicated journey, fraught with unforeseen challenges…hello pandemic, hello Denver construction permit delays…we are now finally able to open the Free Book Room to the public. People came to browse starting day one. There is not one person or even one committee that can take the credit. Truly, BookGive’s successes are a collective celebration of the way that literacy builds community. Thank you for being part of it.
Visit the Free Book Room, 4890 Lowell Blvd.
Tues, Weds, Fri 10am-1pm
2nd & 4th Saturdays 10am-1pm
Support the BookGive mission. Donate today.
