Read to Feed Your Neighbors!
The Witherle Memorial Library is promoting April as a month to spring into reading. To this end we are joining forces with the Hancock County Food Pantry and Healthy Acadia. Throughout the month of April K-8 students have the opportunity to participate in fundraising for every minute they spend reading! Students can practice their reading skills, support their neighbors through fundraising, and even win prizes at a local bookstore!
Our community needs our help as more than 1 in 10 Maine households goes without nutritious food, making Maine the most food insecure state in New England. Childhood food insecurity rates in our region are even higher: according to Kids Count Data Center, 1 in 5 children in Hancock County live in food insecure households, which can have lifelong impacts on children’s physical health, mental health, and education outcomes. By building resources for local food programs, the Hancock County Food Drive works to ensure that all people in our community have access to nutritious, affordable food!
Witherle’s adult library patrons can also join us in supporting our local food pantry by donating money to the project by clicking here. When you click the link you will be taken to a site where you can locate the Witherle Memorial Library donations page. Hunger knows no season!
Get Started
- Registration link – Register to receive instructions, log sheets, and to stay up to date on all things Read-a-Thon.
- Participant Log Sheet. You will receive a log sheet after you register. Use this to track the number of minutes you spend reading from April 1-30. You will receive weekly reminders to update your Log Sheet and can update your reading activity on the Read-a-thon page.
- Sponsor Registration – Share this link with friends, family, neighbors, etc. who want to sponsor your reading challenge. Feel free to share information on food insecurity and the Food Drive (www.hcfooddrive.org/foodinsecurity) to let them know what their sponsorship is supporting. They can pledge 1 cent, 5 cents, 10 cents, or more for each page read by the participant in April, or they can pledge a flat donation. At the end of the month, we will contact your sponsors to let them know how much you read!
- Book Recommendation form – If you love a book (especially if it’s about food or agriculture) and want to share it with other participants, please let us know!
Recommended Books on Food and Agriculture from our Catalog
Click on the cover to request a book.