Good news travels fast. It’s true. All it takes is one person telling another, and the ripple of good begins. Imagine walking out on a Saturday morning and seeing a big yellow bus with a sign that says free books. That’s what Joey, Roman and Mackenna saw while walking with their father to the Georgetown Village Market. They were the first ones who found Bess the Book Bus when the 2012 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour rolled into Racine, WI. Their excitement set off the chain events that sent books into classrooms, health clinics and home libraries.
Joey, Mackenna and Roman pose with their brand new books at the Georgetown Community Market in Racine, WI.
After the three had first pick of the books aboard the bus, they went back to the neighboring apartments and started fueling good. They spread the word so fast, that it seemed like no time until we had a steady trickle of pajama clad families coming to see about the bus giving away free books. Amazed, parents pulled out their cellphones and passed along the good word. “You won’t believe what is going on at the CITGO station,” they said and the crowd grew bigger.
In just three hours, we donated more than 1,100 books to children ages 2 to 92, and that’s no exaggeration. Mrs. Rose is a 92 year-old-retired school teacher. She keeps books around for her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. “Teach a child to read,” she said, “and he can travel the world.”
“Teach a child to read and he can travel the world.”
Word spread from Racine to Milwaukee. Mary Siegrist is the director Reach Out and Read Milwaukee. The organization gives away more than 10,000 books each year to health clinics and hospitals for doctors to give to children. It promotes health and literacy in communities that struggle with each. We met Mary last year at an event in Milwaukee, where we loaded up her car with 1,200 books donated from Capstone. This year, we helped again, donating 900 new books to the cause.
Paying forward a good deed goes a lot further than you think. It only takes one person to start the ripple that creates the Fueling Good phenomenon. In Racine, kids went door to door, parents called friends and Mary Siegrist drove from Milwaukee. They all knew a good thing when they saw it, and that’s something worth sharing. Together, we can keep the good rolling all across the country.
In 2008, there were more murders in Chicago than U.S. soldier casualties in Afghanistan. Englewood is one of five Chicago neighborhoods that has seen more than 100 murders since 2007. Last year, Jennifer received a request for a visit from a school located inside the three mile area.
Miss Vikki Stokes, principal of Guggenheim Elementary school wrote to Bess the Book Bus explaining the challenges seen in her community. She made an honest ask on behalf of her kids, when others in similar situations would be hesitant. We visited last July while most students were in summer school. For some, the classes were voluntary and students could stop by for a free lunch and breakfast. It was a safe place to be.
The 2012 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight Tour returned to Chicago for four days of outreach split between the inner city and the suburbs. We partnered with Transitions, VSP and Hoya Vision to bring Eyenstein, the mobile eye care clinic, to provide free comprehensive eye exams and glasses to the students. For the city schools, we chose Guggenheim and Morgan elementary schools. Miss Stokes transferred this year from the former to the latter. Morgan Elementary is located 12 blocks south of Guggenheim, a distance of about two miles, but the two schools seem worlds apart.
Students at Morgan Elementary School are excited to read.
At Morgan Elementary, the students knew what books they liked, and talked about the things they wish they could read. We were asked for Cam Jansen mysteries, Big Nate and anything involving dinosaurs. Sabria Jackson was amazed by the bus. She spent twenty minutes picking through the shelves, pulling out books, carefully reading the back covers and leafing through the pages. Sabria knew she could only choose one book to take home, and she was going to make sure it was a good one. Seeing that is a sure sign that she has developed a love of reading.
The teaching staff at Morgan Elementary are responsible for that. They incorporate books into the class every day. Yolanda Sattler is a resource specialist working with seventh and eighth grade students, and she still reads aloud to her class. The Bluford series from Townsend Press is the only thing her students are excited to see. “I think the students can relate to the situations in the story lines,” she says. The books cover the issues faced by students including bullying, body image and school violence. She picked out a classroom set, including the newest books Breaking Point, Pretty Ugly and The Test. There was a constant crowd outside the bus all day. Even after the final bell rang, students asked to come back aboard and pick out an extra book for their little brothers and sisters.
At Guggenheim, we saw an entirely different school. Third and forth graders cleared our selection of activity books and seventh graders walked away with Mickey’s Scary Night. The kids’ book choices reflected the fact that they did not seem to know what they wanted and that they seemed unwilling or uninterested in challenging themselves. A retired teacher that was passing by came aboard to check us out. She commented that the books were just too hard for these kids. Even at 5th grade she insisted they needed sight words. They had not learned to read for the most part. Their parents were not readers. There were no books in the homes and few in the school library.
At the end of the school year, Guggenheim Elementary will shut down and the students will be cycled through another set teachers and administrators. These are kids that have been given up on. And the children are giving up too, based on the low expectations set for them. The odds are against them as they are shuffled off to another school where more bright faces and forced smiles will assure them that “This time it will be better.”
Comparing the two schools, you have to ask which student stands a better chance. Chicago can be a tough place to grow up. The pressure to do well doesn’t meet the present opportunities. We have to ask ourselves if we are doing the best we can for our children – ALL of our children. We have to stop being so short sighted. It is time we put politics aside and assess our vision for their future and realize that ours depends on it. If we do not afford these children the same basic resources as we afford our most privileged children, how do we expect them to succeed? How do we expect this country to succeed?
David poses with his brand new glasses, which were made aboard Eyenstein, the mobile eye care clinic from Transitions and VSP.
When David was asked how he liked his new glasses, he said they were a little weird. He laughed as he moved the new pair up and down, noticing the difference instantly. It had been more than a year since his last vision screening and his prescription needed an update. He was asked what made the glasses weird, and he paused before answering. “They make everything clear.”
David was one of 94 fifth grade students at Central Elementary School in Plainfield, IL who received a comprehensive eye exam. The screenings were part of the 2012 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight Tour as Bess the Book Bus and Eyenstein, the mobile eye care clinic from Transitions and VSP, visited four Chicago Area schools.
To start the sixth grade, Chicago students are required to have a dental and health screening before the first day of school. But the rules include nothing about a vision test. More than 80 percent of what students learn is taken in visually. An undetected vision problem can cause the student challenges in the classroom. Hoya Vision partnered with Transitions and VSP to provide volunteers and trained staff to accommodate the screenings at Guggenheim Elementary, Morgan Elementary, Richmond Intermediate and Central Elementary.
Dr. Cheryl Meyers adjusts the phoropter on a student during a comprehensive eye exam at Richmond Intermediate School.
Music rooms were transformed into exam rooms to accommodate the large number of screenings. Additional autorefractors and phoropters were brought in, and three optometrists were on hand for the screenings at each site.
Ryan Schilb, a teacher at Richmond Intermediate, knew that some of his students needed glasses. He could tell by the way they squinted at the blackboard and complained of headaches in class. A new seating chart wasn’t solving the problem, but help came from a visit from mobile clinic could. Seven of his students received a comprehensive eye exam and four came back with glasses.
“I had one student who wasn’t excited about getting glasses,” said Schilb. “But after having them on for an hour, he was saying that he couldn’t see anything without them.”
A student tries on frames after her eye exam. Eyenstein is a complete mobile clinic with an exam room, lens grinder and dozens of frames to choose from.
Throughout the four schools, 298 students had a comprehensive eye exam and nearly half needed glasses. Ninety one students walked off of Eyenstien with glasses fitted with Transitions lenses and another 41 had prescriptions sent to Hoya Lab to be filled.
Students read books while waiting to see an optometrist.
Vision and literacy go hand in hand. Before student students saw an optometrist, they came aboard Bess the Book Bus and picked out a brand new book. Over the course of the week, 1,953 books were given to students to build home and school libraries.
Safety Harbor Elementary students show off their brand new books from Bess the Book Bus at the Transitions Golf Championship.
A good golfer is happy with a drive that goes beteween 300 and 400 yards. But from behind the 18th hole at Innisbrook, Bess the Book Bus is hoping to make it all the way across the country.
Since 2009, the Transitions Golf Championship has served as the kick off event for Bess’s nationwide mobile literacy outreach. The 2012 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight Tour starts the same way.
It is a busy day as 900 students arrive from six schools for Youth Days at the Transitions Championship. They traveled from as far as Polk County. Rushes come in waves as students roam the course and experience the various events including activites with Radio Disney and golf talk with the pros.
Walid, a second grader from Lynch Elementary, goes wide eyed as he steps on board Bess the Book Bus. “There are so many books to choose,” he says while sifting through the shelves. He passes through Magic Tree House titles and an illustrated copy of The Hobbit. Then he looks at Rick Riordin’s The Last Olympian and Lois Lowry’s Number the Stars. Finally, he settles on a G.I. Joe coloring and activity book and hops out the back of the bus. Another student steps on to pick a brand new book to take home.
Free comprehensive eye exams took place inside the Think About Your Eyes pavilion, where more than 500 students were screened. One in four children suffer from undetected vision challenges. These challenges can lead to difficulty learning in the classroom and cause a cascading effect on a child’s development. Transitions and VSP provided Sight for Students gift certificates so that students could receive comprehensive eye exams and glasses with Transitions Lenses. In 2011, Transitions and VSP donated more than 5,000 gift certificates to students across the country.
Students were invited to Youth Days at the Transitions Golf Championship for completing the My Eye Promise and a response to a simple question. Students were asked what they would miss without healthy vision. Their answers ranged from sunrises to sunsets, and the faces of their friends and families. But as students exited the book bus with their heads down, nearly tripping on their own two feet, it was obvious they would miss the joys of a good book.
Youth Days continues on March 14. The 2012 Transitions VSP Success is in Sight Tour starts in April with stops in Chicago, Atlanta and Detroit. To bring Bess the Book Bus to your school or community program, e-mail a request to Jennifer Frances at jenn@bessthebookbus.org. Follow Bess on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for updates on the tour. And as always, safe travels through the pages.
“This place is full of magic,” said nine-year-old Jamelia as she stepped on the bus. The ceiling was painted in Starry Night swirls and the shelves were stocked with books, thousands of books. A smile stretched across her face as she imagined the possibilities.
The 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight Tour traveled to Harlem to be part of the Harlem Children’s Festival. Bess was joined by Eyenstein, the mobile vision clinic from Transitions and VSP in an effort to prepare kids for success in the classroom. While Bess the Book Bus gave away thousands of new books, the Transitions/VSP team gave our kids the gift of healthy sight by providing free eye exams and new glasses.
Harlem Children’s Festival is part of Harlem Week, a summer long celebration of community achievement. A marching band paraded down 135th street to open the event and then thousands of people followed. Local artists and musicians stretched city streets in between tables of hand-crafted jewelry and home cooked food. Pushcarts of Italian Ice weaved through the crowd in search of children with melting face paint. The scene stretched throughout the long city blocks.
A little something for everyone.
Bess and Eyenstein parked amidst it all, between the WHCR live broadcast and the talent show stage. Despite the wall of sound, lines formed as word spread about the free books. Retired teachers told parents. Teens told their friends. Kids grabbed their cousins and neighbors. From the Bluford series to Handy Manny, there was something on board for everyone. Even adults came aboard to ask if we had any books for them. Sometimes they said it with a laugh, sometimes with a whisper.
A father approached the bus with his three children and enthusiastically helped them pick out books. While they were sifting through the shelves, he stopped Jennifer and asked a question so quietly that it begged repeating.
“Do you have anything that will help me read better?”
This question has been common across the country, but it’s still shocking to hear. It takes courage to start that conversation, especially with a stranger. But the answer is always simple. “Yes. We do. You are already doing it”. Bring as many books as possible into your home. Read to your children. Read every day. Read anything you can get your hands on. Ask your librarian for help looking up family literacy initiatives like the National Center for Family Literacy.
Across the country, there are 93 million Americans who read below a fifth grade level. Adults living poverty are more likely to struggle with reading challenges. Those living in poverty also have less access to books. The answer to illiteracy isn’t magic. It is simple. Get more books into the homes of our families. Build home libraries and lifelong readers. Equal access to quality reading materials and other educational resources is critical to the success of this country. The good news? It is easy to do. Every dollar donated to Bess the Bus provides up to three new books for our families, opening worlds of opportunity.
Bess the Book Bus continues on to keep success in sight for children and families across the country. Follow on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube for more updates through the trip. Until next time, safe travels through the pages.
The 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour encountered a set back when Bess the Book Bus broke down en route to Millinocket. Getting a tow turned into an ordeal, but the worst part of the day was missing our event. Aid for Kids brought a care package on our behalf filled with brand new books and hand sewn blankets. The books went out on time with Bangor Savings as part of an exciting day with a bounce house and lunch to lift the spirits of a downtrodden town.
Millinocket has faced a series of hardships over the past three years including the closing of its two paper mills. The most recent closing happened in April, leaving hundreds unemployed. Tax revenue is down and causing cutbacks in the town’s services. The library hours were cut in half. Opal Myrick Elementary School will move from its building and start the school year inside the high school.
Fort Fairfield
With Bess still in the shop, the 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour continued book fair style in Fort Fairfield. We brought boxes of brand new books into the library and spread out on the tables. Children browsed around looking through the titles. We had a great selection including books from Candlewick Press, Capstone Publishing, Penguin and Townsend Press. After everyone found the perfect book, it was story time in the children’s room.
Fort Kent
Oliver Caron looks in awe as Jennifer Frances shares fun facts from "Snakes" by Capstone Publishing.
Fort Kent features the northernmost point of U.S. 1, the 2,300 mile road that travels through 13 states along the Atlantic coast before ending in Key West. But unlike the Southern tip, Fort Kent is not known for year round visitors. The 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight Tour traveled north at the request of Michelle Raymond, Fort Kent’s head librarian. More than 30 children were also excited that Bess the Book Bus made the drive, including six-year-old Oliver Caron. Snakes are one of his favorite things and found the perfect book on Bess’s shelves.
There are more updates coming from our month in Maine. Stay up to date on all of travels by following Bess the Book Bus on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Pictures from the Maine events and the rest of the 2011 Transistions/VSP Success is in Sight tour are also online at Picasa. Until next time, safe travel through the pages.
After three months on the road, Bess the Book Bus finally found a home away from home. The 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour traveled to Maine for a full month of mobile literacy outreach. We were able to spend so much time in the state because of the hospitality from Degenhardt family and the Aid For Kids Foundation.
Dawn and Ed “Hunk” Degenhardt opened up their homes in Houlton and Jonesport, allowing us to stay while we traveled to the rural parts of Maine. They also opened up their garage, turning it into a temporary a bus depot. Since the trip started in May, the Degenhardts accepted shipments from First Book, Candlewick Press,Capstone Publishers and Townsend Press. More than 9,000 books were waiting when we arrived. The restock was needed. The 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour approached the halfway point, giving away more than 50,000 books across 24 states leaving Bess’s shelves bare.
Houlton
Author Rebecca Emberley helps children with activities from her book, "Adventure Girls".
Our first event was at the Community Fair in Houlton, ME. The event was hosted by Aid for Kids Foundation, an international humanitarian organization founded by Dawn Degenhardt. Bess the Book Bus and author Rebecca Emberley set up inside the Houlton Community Center. More than 200 children attended the event. In addition to the books given away by Bess the Book Bus and author Rebecca Emberley, children enjoyed games, prizes and food provided by Citgo’s Fueling Good.
Houlton Citgo
During our stay in Houlton, Bess the Book Bus became a regular in town. We made frequent stops at the library, McDonalds and Citgo service stations. Families followed us around town, bringing home brand new books to build their home libraries.
Lincoln
Two-year-old Kevin gets comfy on the book bus floor while his dad helps him read "Choo Choo Mickie" donated from First Book.
The town of Lincoln is 70 miles south of Houlton and the second stop in the state. Bess the Book Bus arrived in time for the library’s annual book sale. Tables were lined up in the parking lot with stacks of books for as little as 25 cents. But Bess the Book Bus had a better a deal. We set up on the library’s front lawn and gave away brand new books to more than 40 children.
There are more updates coming from our month in Maine. Stay up to date on all of travels by following Bess the Book Bus on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Pictures from the Maine events and the rest of the 2011 Transistions/VSP Success is in Sight tour are also online at Picasa. Until next time, safe travel through the pages.
For the past two years, Bess the Book Bus kicked off our nationwide tour at the Transitions Championship in Innisbrook, FL. The seven day golf tournament brought in 2,000 children from Title 1 schools and gave them access to things that are normally out of reach including golf lessons, eye exams and brand new books. Larry Bicz saw Bess giving away brand new books behind the 18th hole and approached us about bringing the bus to his home town of Buffalo, NY.
Larry knew there was need in his community and saw Bess as a way to help. It became a personal mission to make sure that we could come. He helped with everything from hosting to planning. He also brought on Stacy Lund of Entercom Communications to promote our events and increase our impact. Their involvement made it possible for the 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour to travel to Buffalo for three days of outreach. Personal partnerships are a key piece in keeping success in sight for children across the country. We are thankful for similar individuals in New York, Colorado and Maine that make this trip possible.
The Belle Center
An afternoon on the lawn is a great way spend a sunny afternoon. The children in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program joined Bess the Book Bus at The Belle Center for a raucous read aloud on the lawn. As the line formed to pick brand new books, neighbors started to notice. The Belle Center is the resource hub for Western New York and includes programs that help infants through seniors. More people arrived at the event, opening access of books to families who can’t afford them. Extra books were donated to The Belle Center to support the preschool and teen programs.
Children had thousands of books to choose from including some of their favorite titles from Candlewick Press, Capstone, Penguin and Townsend Press.
The Falk School
Summer was in full effect, but some schools were still in session. Bess the Book Bus made special visits to the Stanley G. Falk School and its satellite campus at Public School 53. Stanley G. Falk School provides educational programming for students who have special learning, social, and emotional needs. The Stanley G. Falk School also works with an onsite group home.
“Most of our students come from really limited home settings,” said principal Martha Sanfilippo. ”They don’t have the opportunities to go to the library. They don’t have the opportunities to have someone sit down and read them a story. So to have someone read a story to them to share books and words, you can just tell that it’s a component in their lives that they are hungry for.”
Barnes and Noble
Our final event in Buffalo was at the local Barnes & Noble. Jennifer was invited to share the stage with Grandma Fay, the resident reader. Grandma Fay’s story time has been an in-store staple for six years. Her weekly groups come together for something more than just business as usual.
“Even though it’s retail,” says Fay, “It’s about the friends the books and the good kids that work here.”
Parents bring children of all ages to get engaged in reading. Grandma Fay includes songs, games and activities to bring her stories to life. Jennifer read Grumpy Bird and Grandma Fay read The Story About Ping. Afterward, children skipped coloring time to come on the bus and pick out brand new books.
After breaking down on the U.S. 1, Bess the Book Bus gets a ride back to town on "Old Sweetheart"
Kerchunk. That’s how Monday started. The engine went kerchunk, all power was lost, and three check engine lights switched on. There are only a few things that can delay the 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight tour and an engine killing kerchunk is on that short list.
When the kerchunk hit, we were heading South on U.S. 1 to an event in Millinocket, ME. We pulled over to the shoulder and sat on the edge of nowhere, almost halfway between Houlton and Millinocket. Finding a mechanic was going to be a certain challenge. Bess is a 2004 Dodge Sprinter with a Mercedes diesel engine. The nearest Mercedes mechanic was 80 miles away in Bangor. Finding a tow truck willing to take us that far was nearly impossible, even with the help of AAA.
As they called dozens of towing companies, receiving one refusal after another, we made calls to possible mechanics. A passing driver saw our flashing hazards and pulled over to check on the situation. Lori was driving her son Nate to golf practice and had to stop, worrying that no one else would. This was a stroke of good luck at the start of an otherwise bad day. Her husband is a volunteer firefighter in Danforth and knew most of the mechanics and tow trucks in the area. Lori and Nate waited until Tom arrived to take their place. And although we thought everything was under control, he chose to keep us company on the side of the road.
The first hour passed, then the second. AAA was having no luck finding a towing company. The wait lasted hours. Tom scoffed every time a tow truck refused to come out. The tow was either too far, Bess was too big, or the money made from the tow would not cover their expenses. One company wouldn’t come out because of the risk of moose on the road. In Maine, that is an actual concern. A 3,500 lb moose can total a semi. Logging trucks fearlessly flew by in both directions.
Aside from the trucks, the road was quiet. A few cars drove past, two of which were Tom’s friends. The allure of an open hood was too much to pass up. They pulled over and peered inside, nothing looked wrong. No leaks, no blown hoses, no nothing. Based on the description Jennifer gave, it could be the engine’s turbo, the fuel filter or even a sensor. A kerchunk in the engine is a non-technical term and couldn’t rule out much.
It was almost noon when Hayes Towing, the only tow truck that would agree to come out, arrived. We waved down the dusty flatbed and the driver stepped out. Jennifer greeted him as he unwrapped the chains and turned on the lift. The tow truck, “Old Sweetheart”, hardly looked big (or sturdy) enough to tow Bess.
“Well, I can get her up,” he said. “Let’s hope I can tow her and get her back down.” From behind his mirrored sunglasses, it was hard to tell if it was a joke. Still, he dropped to ground and hooked the chains to Bess’s carriage. The wench turned on and rattled the chains. It was shaky for a moment as fluid leaked from Old Sweetheart’s bed. Slowly, Bess and her 3,000 books rolled forward and climbed aboard the truck. Todd could offer no guarantee, but he would try to tow us in. Todd was friendly despite the fact that he had to have his own truck, the one now towing Bess, towed back to the shop by his 15-year-old son and repaired mid way to rescuing us. He had blown a fuel pump and had to replace it prior to coming back out to get Bess. His initial hour drive from Staceyville had now taken him three hours. The tow to Bangor would take an additional two hours, and then he had an hour drive home. This was not going to be a money making endeavor for him, but he knew he was the only driver that had agreed to come out.
As we climbed into the cab, Todd offered us a soda and off we went. To get to Bangor, we would need to find a safe place to turn around. As we were turning, Todd got a call. It turned out to be a mechanic friend in Houlton recommending York Toyota, which was great news as it did not seem that Old Sweetheart was going to make the trip to Bangor. Her clutch was failing and the bed was still leaking hydraulic fluid. The ride to town was spent talking and trying to avoid red lights as Todd babied the shifter on his seven speed transmission through the hills and into Houlton.
Getting Bess down was went smoothly. The hydraulic bed shifted and gravity took care of the rest. Before Todd made the hour drive back home, we wanted to thank him for his help and hard work. Coming to get Bess was out of the way and dozens of closer tow trucks turned down the job. Despite his own mechanical challenges, Todd was not willing to leave us stranded. He knew getting Bess the Book Bus back on the road meant getting books into the hands of children. It’s because of people like Todd, people that embody the Fueling Good movement, that we can continue across the country. We sent him with a stack of books for his own children and a spot grant of a Citgo gas card worth $130. Thanks for Fueling Good, Todd.
Bess’s first breakdown at the start of the trip had set us back, $7,000, but it did not stop us. We were halfway to recouping those costs when the kerchunk sounded. The new repairs mean an additional setback of $1,200 and a serious blow to our budget, but this will not stop us either. We are determined to keep Success in Sight for our kids. The Fueling Good spirit embodied by Lori, Tom, and Todd kept our spirits up too. Fueling Good means doing what you can, when you can, for who you can, where and how you can despite life’s obstacles. We can do that. And thanks to DONATIONS from the folks fueling good at the Citgo refinery in Sulphur, LA and SVS Vision, a Transitions and VSP partner in Detroit, we are $600 closer to being back on track.
The Ebersold family suffered a terrible loss when 9-year-old Clayton was fatally struck by a car in 2007. Clayton crossed the road to check the mail, hopeful to find a brand new book inside. There was no package and as Clayton crossed back, he was hit by a station wagon in front of his home in Fredonia, WI. The book arrived two days after Clayton passed and was buried with Clayton.
Books were a fond part of Clayton’s memory that became his legacy. He was a veracious reader and always had a book nearby. His family kept extra books in the car in case he finished one while out at the grocery store. Classmates at Ozaukee elementary were encouraged by Clayton to find exciting new reads. After Clayton’s untimely passing, his family found a way to keep that passion alive.
The Ebersold family started Clayton’s Collection, an annual book drive, to share the joy that Clayton found in the pages of a book. It’s also a way for the Ebersolds to come together over Clayton’s love. Cheryl and Clinton, Clayton’s parents, collect books from local businesses and organizations. After school and on weekends, Cayleigh helps sort the books and attach her brother’s picture and memorial. In its four year history, Clayton’s Collections brought in more than 13,000 books.
The first year’s books were sent to victims of Hurricane Katrina. The following year supported flood victims in Tennessee. In 2009, Cheryl saw Bess the Book Bus in People Magazine and saw a chance to share Clayton’s love, Clayton’s story, across the country.
Bess traveled to Wisconsin in 2010 to receive the Ebersolds’ gift. We embraced Clayton’s memory by dedicating a special special shelf for his books and always keeping his picture on board. His books reached coast to coast, helping children who need encouraging friends like Clayton to keep reading.
The 2011 Transitions/VSP Success is in Sight Tour returned to Fredonia. Clayton’s Collection held its biggest book drive yet, receiving more than 4,000 books. We visited the Ozaukee Elementary, home of Clayton’s Corner. A section of the school’s library was decorated in camouflage, Clayton’s favorite, and shelved with his favorite books. Classmates made banners that hang in his memory. One banner reads:
“We will remember Clayton Ebersold as our kind friend who had a passion for reading and cared enough about each of us to share what he had learn so that we could learn too.
His warm smile.
His funny shirts.
His hilarious jokes.
Clayton taught us about friendship simply by being our friend. It was easy to be around him because he treated us with kindness and respect. There will always be a bright spot in our hearts especially for Clay.”
