Thank you for over thirty wonderful years of reading and learning together. BFK has closed its doors.
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WELCOME TO THE BFK VIRTUAL 5K WALK/RUN!
When you exercise your right to read and stand up for the same rights for others, you move the world closer to one that uplifts every child.
Now is the time speak out and stand up for young children everywhere as they take their first steps on their journey to literacy.
We're asking you to lace up your shoes, use your voice, and help provide children with access to the books that will help move them through life in ways big and small. Please join us in support of our students as we work to ensure their stories are heard, their early educational needs are met, and that the books filling the shelves inspire them and reflect our world.
Want to have your photos featured on our website and Instagram? Send photos of you training for and/or participating in the virtual 5K to Samantha at ssalloway@booksforkids.org
Fundraiser Spotlights!
Team: Boston Bookworms
Team Leader: Sam Salloway
Where are they participating: Greater Boston Area
What prompted you to first get involved with Books for Kids?
I have been a voracious reader since childhood and have always had a very strong awareness that without the books and literacy-promoting resources I had access to that my life could have ended up very differently. My parents really instilled in me that my education was the thing no one could ever take from me. I believe literacy is the key tool to agency in our current society, and every single person has a right to it. Early childhood gives us an incredible window of opportunity to set foundations that will help kids grow to be confident and capable in school and beyond. The way the brain changes in those first five years is so incredible you'd think it were magic if you didn't know any better, but it's all proven science. Children in early childhood and their families deserve our time and investment. All kids deserve our time and investment, our love and our care. That mission has kept me here as a staff member for 7 years.
Where are you running/walking your 5K, and does that place have special significance to you?
I'll be walking my 5K in one of the many natural areas around greater Boston. I'll admit I haven't chosen which one yet! I was born in coastal Massachusetts but spent most of my life in New York and only just moved back here last year. Exploring my home state feels very special.
What are your favorite ways to stay active?
I love to go for long walks and go hiking (both highly meditative until the climb gets a little too steep...).
Do you regularly visit your local library, or do you have a favorite public library to visit?
I visit my public library all. the. time. It's the best. Though I do have a special soft spot for my old library in Sunnyside, Queens. It got me through some difficult times.
Your most frequented independent bookstore:
The Harvard Square Bookstore. They have an enormous nonfiction collection in addition to fiction, and a whole second level dedicated to used books. Let's just say I've really made their rewards program work for me.
An audiobook you loved:
Sadie by Courtney Summers. An incredibly difficult read, even as a YA novel. But the unique voice, how it plays with the form of podcasting within an audiobook, and the commentary on our fascination with missing girls and true crime in general all make it a "must read."
A book you're currently reading:
Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher.
A book on your "to read" list:
People from my Neighborhood, a collection of short stories by Hiromi Kawakami.
Peep that Boston Lobstah roll.
Where are our participants?
The joy of a virtual 5K walk/run is not only safety, but that people with a shared mission can join in from wherever they are!
NYC- 2 teams
Greater Boston- 1 team
Your city?