K-Kids at Pinon Elementary School pose with the boxes of books they have collected and prepared for shipment through the African Library Project. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

Pinon Elementary School K-Kids make bookmarks to send to Africa along with the books they have collected. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

Chamisa Elementary School K-Kids and art teacher Andrea Lynch with boxes of books they have collected and packed for the African Library Project. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

Barranca Mesa Elementary School K-KIds pack boxes of books for shipment. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

BY BROOKE DAVIS
Kiwanis Club of Los Alamos

This is the 8th year that books have been collected to create libraries for children in Africa through the African Library Project (www.africanlibraryproject.org). To date, 125 libraries of 1200 books each have been sent from the Los Alamos community. Kiwanis sponsored K-Kids clubs at Barranca, Aspen, and Pinon schools held book drives to collect good-condition children’s books during September and October. Each club was matched up with and received information about a school in Kenya.

Student clubs were responsible for sorting and packing books, making bookmarks and posters, writing personal notes to include in the boxes, and (with help from sponsors, Kiwanians and LAHS Key Club) hauling boxes to the post office for shipping. In total, 79 boxes containing 6175 books were shipped.

Two-thirds of the over $3000 shipping cost was provided by student clubs. They raised the money by selling green and gold bead necklaces for the high school homecoming parade, selling See’s lollipops, and asking families and school staff to “adopt a box”. We were able to ship an extra 12 boxes of books, the equivalent of one full library, to help other organizations that may not have been able to collect a full library for their African school.

The students did a great job and are grateful to the Los Alamos community for their continuing generosity in donating books!

We expect to ship 3-4 more libraries, this time to Malawi and Ghana, in the spring of 2025 with help from our LAMS Builders Club and our newest K-Kids Club at Mountain School. Donations to offset shipping costs are always appreciated.

Editor’s note: To learn more about the African Library Project or to make an online donation towards shipping, please visit here.

Aspen Elementary School K-Kids count out money they have raised for the African Library Project. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

The Chamisa Elementary School K-Kids team that has been gathering and collecting books as part of the African Library Project. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

Aspen Elementary K-Kids record the number of books they have collected and packed for shipment to Africa. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis

K-Kids at Barranca Mesa Elementary School with their sponsor Valerie Collins. Photo Courtesy Kiwanis