Do you wish that every child had books at home so they could discover a love for reading? Do you want to help students who fell behind during the COVID-19 pandemic? Do you understand life’s challenges and want to help adults needing to get their high school diploma?
The library does, too! And you can help us with our efforts. In the last few years, we’ve added new services that address these needs thanks to gifts made to the Daniel Boone Regional Library Foundation. Every penny donated is spent directly on services that benefit your friends, family and neighbors.
Getting Books Into Children’s Hands
The library introduced 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten in September 2021 with $37,000 raised through the DBRL Foundation to support the program. More than 2,300 preschoolers and their families in Boone and Callaway Counties have signed up since.
Each time children read 100 books toward their 1,000 book goal, they earn a free book. Research shows that children exposed to books early in life do better in school.
In 2019, with more than $158,000 in donations from individuals and businesses, the library purchased a specially equipped van we call the Book Rover. Some busy families can’t get to the library, so we take the library to the children. Before the pandemic, Book Rover took story times, books and other library materials to more than 4,200 preschoolers in child care centers. Book Rover went back on the road this year.
Helping Students Catch Up
To support local elementary through college students, especially during the pandemic, Foundation donors gave almost $45,000 to fund the library’s subscription to Brainfuse, an acclaimed online tutoring service. Free to library cardholders in Boone and Callaway Counties, Brainfuse provides effective, one-to-one academic support on hundreds of topics for learners of all ages.
Adults can take advantage of Brainfuse, too, through a module just for older students.
Facilitating Adult Learning Success
In the fall of 2021, we joined other libraries in the state to offer Excel Adult High School (EAHS), an initiative of the Missouri State Library which gives adults the opportunity to earn a nationally accredited high school diploma online. We were able to fund 18 scholarships in 2022 that covered the cost of tuition and a Chromebook. We hope to raise funds to offer even more scholarships in 2023.
It’s gratifying for library staff and Foundation donors to be able to help more people achieve, both in school and in life. If you share one or all of these passions, now you know that there is a direct way for you to help by teaming up with the library. Helping others creates a better community for everyone.
How to Donate to the DBRL Foundation
The DBRL Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that raises funds on behalf of DBRL. This year, the Foundation is focused on raising money to fund more EAHS scholarships. You can make a tax-deductible gift anytime online at www.dbrl.org/giving.
You can also donate through the CoMoGives annual local giving campaign in December or mail a check to: DBRL Foundation, P.O. Box 7113, Columbia, MO 65205. Questions? Contact Melia Douglass, (573) 817-7023.