Barnes & Noble Christmas Book Drive – Frisco
First Free Book Fair with the State Fair of Texas Foundation at J.J.Rhoads Learning Center in Dallas
Journey to Dream’s Shop with a Cop
LovePacs November – Christmas distribution
Angel Tree – Vickery Elementary
Single Parent Advocate Christmas
These words serenade us as we hurriedly drive to Black Friday sales, school recitals, and holiday parties. They croon in our living rooms as we decorate our Christmas tree. We hum them in the midst of the baking, shopping, traffic, and crammed schedules. It’s easy to begin to wonder, Is it REALLY the most wonderful time of the year?
Yesterday, in the midst of back-to-back book fair events shepherding hundreds of children through tables filled with lovely books, it WAS the most wonderful time of year! I did not experience it in the perfect gift or decoration or even in the hustle and bustle of children dressed in holiday gear. I found it in a shared smile, a funny comment, a genuine question, and a moment of real listening to another. These brief moments of shared humanity brought a genuine smile to my face. As the hurriedness was set aside, we entered a moment of “seeing” each other with full attention. These simple interactions that lasted only 30 seconds filled my heart, making this the most wonderful time of the year.
The Christmas season is my favorite time of the year. I love the decorations, the baking, the songs, and the gift-giving; however, it is so easy to feel the stress and forget the actual purpose of all the activities. Christmas is a holy-day (holiday) to celebrate the greatest gift of all time, Jesus. He embraced humanity and regularly connected one-on-one to give the greatest gift – love. “We love because He first loved us” (I John 4:9) is a foundational principle of Book Drive for Kids. When we are tired, it is this truth that provides the “Why” to all our effort. We are rewarded in these simple exchanges of love – an excited whoop, a shy smile, or a warm heart.
May you experience a truly Wonderful Time of the Year!!
Michelle
For more information about conducting your own book donation drive or volunteering with Book Drive for Kids, visit their website at HOME – Book Drive for Kids or email [email protected].
Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. – Helen Keller
During the summer of 2020, as Donna Esposito was moving to Flower Mound, she came across an abundance of books her children had accumulated over the years. With her kids grown and flown, Donna decided, “It’s time to sort and share!” When she googled where to donate books in the area, Book Drive for Kids popped up. (We are so thankful!) Soon we came by to pick up her donation of TEN BOXES of new and gently used books, and a relationship was born.
Once Donna discovered our mission was to get books into the hearts and homes of disadvantaged children, she wanted to get involved. She understood the importance of books and fostering the love of reading in children; she had encouraged these values in her own home. Now she had the opportunity to do the same for children who did not have books readily available to them.
Today Donna is a regular volunteer and supporter. Here’s what she has to say:
BDK: What keeps you volunteering so regularly?
Donna: “I really enjoy volunteering! Seeing the happy, smiling faces of all the kids who are so excited to have a new book of their own is heartwarming!”
BDK: What is one word that sums up a Book Drive for Kids free book fair?
Donna:“Inspiring!”
BDK: Do you feel like you are making a difference?
Donna: “I’d like to believe that I make a small impact by assisting with the book fairs with an encouraging and enthusiastic demeanor to share the joy that reading can bring.”
BDK: What would you say to someone considering volunteering with us?
Donna:“Do it! Reading is so important to foster in children of all ages.”
Without the consistent, joyful help of volunteers, Book Drive for Kids would not have been able to give away over 50,000 books this past year.
Thank you, Donna, for the servant’s heart you bring to Book Drive for Kids. The smiles and love you share allows these children to know they are seen and valued.
Yes, Book Drive for Kids wants to get books to children in need, but more importantly, we want to share hope for a future full of potential and purpose. It’s because of volunteers like Donna that Book Drive for Kids continues to be invited to host free book fairs. Join Donna in helping change a child’s life, one book at a time.
For those of you in North Texas, come enjoy a fun-filled day of food trucks, local vendors, and music at Rhythms at the River Walk. presented by the Cross Timbers Rotary. The highlight of this event is the Duck Derby, where thousands of rubber duckies race to win $2,500, $2,000, $1,000 or seven other prizes. YOU can win that prize when you adopt a duck for $5. When you use the Book Drive for Kids link, we automatically get $1 of your adoption fee. The other funds are donated to Denton county charities (hopefully Book Drive for Kids will be in that batch of grants) next Spring.
Exciting news!!! In celebration of North Texas Giving Day, your donation will be matched 1:1 thanks to a generous community partner, up to $15,000. North Texas Giving Day, September 21, is the day when North Texans join in supporting the non-profits who do such amazing work in North Texas. When we meet this giving goal of $15,000 it will be matched equaling a gift of $30,000 so we can expand our free book fairs to additional schools in Dallas and Tarrant counties. Double the support equals double the impact! Early giving opened September 1st! Give a book. Change a life.
LEWISVILLE, TX (August 8, 2023) — Book Drive for Kids, a Denton County-based non-profit that partners with community organizations and Title I schools to get books into the hearts and homes of needy children, is excited to announce that it was recently presented with 2,600 books from a community book donation spearheaded by fellow non-profit Flower Mound Women in Business. Several New York Life agents in the Dallas-Fort Worth area also contributed a matching donation of $1,692.
The event was held in June and is the largest community book donation Book Drive for Kids has benefited from since its inception in 2017.
“We are overwhelmed with gratitude for this tremendous support from our local community,” said Michelle Cook, Book Drive for Kids’ Co-Founder and Executive Director. “This gift will bring so many smiles. Thank you to Flower Mound Women in Business and New York Life for making the magic happen — giving books to inspire creativity, laughter, and hope.”
Cook said the initiative wouldn’t have happened without the generosity and out-of-the-box thinking of Flower Mound Women in Business, a non-profit organization with over 4,000 members dedicated to inspiring and empowering women entrepreneurs to live their best lives and give back to the communities where they live and serve. Founder and President Christi Beca and Vice President Amanda Bennett challenged their membership to place book donation boxes at several prominent Denton County businesses. A few of those locations included 214 Dental, Clink Wine Bar & Bites, Cryo Clinic Wellness Center, and Awesome Times.
Local author Carrie Simpson donated a class set of her inspiring children’s book, O! I Swallowed a Seed! The Lewisville Police Department also heard about the initiative and made a significant book donation. Local New York Life agent Lois Kim, also a Flower Mound Women in Business member, enlisted several of her colleagues to match the book gifts with a combined monetary donation of $1,692.
“Flower Mound Women in Business is honored to support Book Drive for Kids, as they are a wonderful organization that supports our youth,” Bennett said. “Michelle Cook is a member of FMWIB and works hard to share her passion through BDK. We always want to support her and other women entrepreneurs in their mission to help as many as possible. We are beyond blessed to have the support within our community and our organization to truly make this happen. We are grateful to have been a part of BDK and are excited to see the impact on many children and families that have been a part of this organization.”
More About Book Drive for Kids
Cook said the latest haul in donations helps further the organization’s efforts statewide as the demand for more intervention continues to grow. The organization has interacted with nearly 20,000 children at free book fairs this school year alone. Since 2017, they’ve donated over 150,000 books to nearly 66,000 students at nearly 100 events in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. And their reach extends to places like Austin, Houston, and South Texas. Book Drive for Kids’ goal is to create a culture of literacy by providing books to disadvantaged children for independent reading. There is no cost to the kids or their families, just an opportunity to read for pleasure and personal fulfillment.
Independent reading is not tested, chosen by the reader, and done for pleasure or personal fulfillment. And studies suggest that independent readers become better readers, score higher on achievement tests in all subject areas, and have greater content knowledge than those who do not. Independent reading may be conducted at school during a silent sustained reading (SSR) period, at home, in the car, or between classes, and even as little as 10 minutes of reading a day has a significant effect on reading test scores.
The organization began in 2017 thanks to Cook and fellow co-founder, Nicol Klingenstein. With a few hundred used books, they offered a teacher friend the opportunity to host a free book fair at her school, where 90% of the kids were economically disadvantaged. The response went through the roof, leading to even more events in the years to come.
For more information, including ways to donate and volunteer, visit bookdriveforkids.com.
Please direct all media inquiries to:
Michelle Cook, Book Drive for Kids
[email protected]
Tanvi Padala, a rising 8th grader at McKamy Middle School in Flower Mound, Texas, LOVES to read! Nancy Drew mysteries, The Vanderbeeker’s series, Wonder, Aru Shah and the End of Time, Allies by Alan Gratz and most recently, the Hunger Games series. Do you recognize some of her favorites?
When Milissa Vo, the school librarian and Literature Club teacher, told Tanvi and her fellow students about Book Drive for Kids and proposed to join the Share A Book campaign. Tanvi jumped right in. She was saddened when she learned that other children in her community did not have access to the plethora of books she has enjoyed throughout her childhood. Mrs. Vo led the Literature Club to donate 595 books during the Spring semester in honor of World Book Day. “It gives me immense happiness when I think about the smiles these books will put on so many children’s faces,” said Tanvi.
As Tanvi thought about summer activities, she wanted to challenge herself. She also wanted to make some kind of difference. How many books could she gather during the summer by herself? She started talking to friends and neighbors and collected 1,078 books!! “Through my book drive, I learned that we can all change the world with small acts of kindness.”
Book Drive for Kids congratulates Tanvi on this amazing accomplishment; but more importantly, her efforts demonstrate a choice to pursue kindness and thoughtfulness. These skills will return many dividends to her as well as the children who receive these books.
For more information about conducting your own book donation drive or volunteering with Book Drive for Kids, visit their website at HOME – Book Drive for Kids or email
[email protected].
The summer blockbuster Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part 1 introduces an artificial intelligence villain that worms its way through our digital world. And when I say our “digital world,” I literally mean every last nook and cranny – GPS, driving records, airline manifests, traffic cameras … even secure documents that should be unhackable. I’m not trying to throw out too many spoilers here, but the Al is so intuitive and powerful that it changes the facial features in Luther’s facial recognition tracking and the audio in Ethan’s earpiece. He hears Benji telling him to go right to escape the villains chasing him, but in reality, Benji is screaming to go left! The Al program infects the Department of Defense, which forces them to enlist hundreds of typists who now must use manual typewriters to transcribe intelligence records so that the Al enemy cannot change them.
Wow! I don’t know about you, but just reading that over again makes me incredibly glad this is just a movie!
Surely, Ethan and his IMF team will save us all from this massive ordeal when Part Two comes out. That said, watching this movie challenged me on so many levels to contemplate the power of technology, Al, and to what extent we can trust digital information. Furthermore, it prompted me to think about the books and stories I have read and loved over the years and what it might be like if I only had these books on a digital device and an outside source decided to “update” the information without my knowledge!
The old-fashioned girl in me is grateful for the physical books that line my shelves! Anytime I want to refresh my memory on historical facts or visit quotes from an old literary character, I can reach for that information in my printed book. I suppose this sentimentality for paper books is part of my comfort, but I know I’m not alone. Studies show the smell of old books can trigger warm feelings and memories in most readers. And I’m not just speaking about us grown-ups. While eBooks and digital readers have made reading more accessible (as long as the device is charged and you have a subscription), children still prefer physical books when reading for pleasure. Additionally, multiple studies show that recall, comprehension, and reflection are stronger when reading with a physical book or article. This is true whether we are reading to learn or reading for fun.
There is genuine concern among educators and psychologists that pushing children to read on devices is actually promoting distractibility when the objective should be to develop the ability to focus on a longer text to be able to stop and to reflect without skimming or moving on too quickly. Devices are designed to be highly stimulating and can lead to overstimulation, especially in young brains. Scholastic reports that by age 9, children are reading less than in previous generations. Children who don’t read lose the knowledge, empathy, curiosity, and imagination built by reading great books. While more affluent families may be able to compensate for some of these skills by additional experiences (vacations, greater social network, etc.), we know that low-income children NEED access to books so they can “visit places and meet new people” without leaving their homes.
At Book Drive for Kids, we distribute printed books to disadvantaged children because we believe in the power of holding a book in your hand and reading it yourself or with others. No matter how old you are, where you grew up, or even what language you speak, if strangers or friends have read the same book, they share a common bond and have something to discuss. Books build bridges to shared experiences, real and imagined.
With over 105,000 children living in poverty in Dallas alone, it seems like a Mission Impossible to help them build a bridge to an abundant life. Reading well is a huge part of that task, which is one of the many reasons Book Drive for Kids is here to allow them to choose books to enrich their lives. Besides the academic benefits, we see intangible benefits – the smiles, hugs, and bright eyes – at every free event! The low-income children we serve love to read but have few, if any, books in their homes.
Together, we can change that fact and transform our communities.
Your mission, should you choose to accept it (see what I did there), is to extend the gift of a book wrapped in hope with Book Drive for Kids.
Get involved today!
We had the good fortune of connecting with Michelle Cook and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Michelle, what’s your definition for success?
For Book Drive for Kids, success is defined by helping children find books that spark imagination, gain knowledge, and be hopeful. The more we can make this happen, the greater our success.
What should our readers know about your business?
Book Drive for Kids began in 2017 with the belief that all children, regardless of their zip code, should have a rich knowledge base that only comes from access to great stories, and not just library books. Some of those books should belong to the child and reside in their homes. With a few hundred used books, Nicol and I offered a teacher-friend to hold a free book fair at her school where 90% of the kids were economically disadvantaged. We were blown away by the positive response from the kids! There are lots of literacy programs available for pre-school children but not many
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Nicol Klingenstein, my best friend and co-founder of Book Drive for Kids, shares the credit for bringing the idea of Book Drive for Kids to life. Without her encouragement, hard work, and willingness to walk down this path with me, Book Drive for Kids would not be touching the lives of so many children. For all who have a dream, you can’t do it alone. Find a person or group of people who will cheer you on as well as roll up their sleeves and pitch in to help when you need it.
Image Credits
Michelle Cook, Nicol Klingenstein
I must admit I was a little apprehensive when Book Drive for Kids’ Co-Founder and Executive Director Michelle Cook asked me if I’d compete in their inaugural Adult Spelling Bee on March 4. Don’t get me wrong; I am all about stepping up for a local charity — especially if that charity’s mission is to get books into the hearts and homes of needy children.
Not to mention, I’m a writer and editor by trade! Independent reading … writing … grammar … spelling … literacy … these are my JAM.
But competing in a spelling bee?! Standing in front of all those people — most of whom know what I do for a living? That’s pressure — even for an Uber-competitive person like me. I don’t think I’ve been in a spelling bee since the 3rd grade, but like most people I know in this community, it’s really hard to say “no” to Michelle. She and fellow BDK co-founder Nicol Klingenstein are the sweetest people. They’re in this for the right reasons, and as I learned about their history, mission, and plans for the future, saying “yes” was a no-brainer.
Full disclosure: My team didn’t win.
Also, full disclosure: I spelled all my words correctly!
But I’m here to tell you that I will absolutely do this again next year — and the year after that, and the year after that, and so on.
Why? Because it doesn’t matter who wins an adult spelling bee. Sure, it was fun getting up there and watching everyone (myself included) spell words like acquiesce, inexhaustible, amphibious, cinnamon, archaic, remembrance, etc., off the top of their heads. But the real winners from an event like that are the kids. The event hauled in $13,900, including a $3,500 grant from the Elk’s National Foundation. That’s huge, as the money raised will support future free book fairs and other initiatives. The organization has interacted with nearly 20,000 children at free book fairs this school year alone. Since 2017, they’ve donated over 150,000 books to nearly 66,000 students at nearly 100 events in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and their reach extends to places like Austin, Houston, and South Texas.
I could tell immediately that all 120 people in attendance that night at Elk’s Lodge in Grapevine believed in what Book Drive for Kids was doing. And just like me, they’ll be back — and they’ll bring more friends, too.
So, Who Won the Adult Spelling Bee?
The adult spelling bee pitted six sponsored teams of three against each other for the championship and other top honors. There were two flights, with the winning team from each flight squaring off in the title round later that evening.
When the dust settled, Spelling Bee Bee 556 (Lois Kim, Mike Kirkpatrick, and Jessie Nair) won the event after narrowly edging the Hip-Bees (Lanette Frost, Melissa Cheshier, and Ashley Williams) in the finals. Third place went to Highway to Spell (Steve Gamel, Crystal Foster, and Buddy Bonner), which won the “Most Fans” award. The Gatsby Grammarians (Sydney Stauffer, Brad Deitzen, and Äugenae Davenport) won the “Best Costume” award. 
Team sponsors included BbK Services 556, Regions Bank, Mantiki Solutions, LLC, ResponsiveEd, Swag Angels, and Puro Clean.
Look Out for Information on Next Year’s Event!
If you didn’t get a chance to attend this year, the good news is that Book Drive for Kids is already working on a follow-up event for next year. I even joked with Michelle at a meeting a few days later that she may need to find a bigger venue in the years to come — to which we both said, “That would be a great problem to have.” As usual, the stakes next year will be higher, the laughs will be side-splitting, and the opportunity to get more books into kids’ hands in Denton County and beyond will be plentiful.
Thanks for reading!
For more information, including ways to donate, volunteer, or participate in next year’s adult spelling bee, visit bookdriveforkids.com.
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