Assistance League of Phoenix Holds Book Drive for Make A Difference Day

PHOENIX, AZ, October 04, 2012 (Press-News.org) Anyone can make a difference by giving a child a book. In celebration of national Make A Difference Day, Assistance League of Phoenix is holding a children's-book drive on Saturday, October 27 at the organization's Thrift Shop at 7044 N. 7th Street, just north of Glendale Avenue. Individuals may drop books off between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.

"We are trying to make it as easy as possible for people to donate children's books by setting up a drop-off station in our Thrift Shop parking lot," said Linda Killmer of Scottsdale, chairman of the project and past national president of Assistance League. "This is a great way to show your children what it means to give back to the community by encouraging them to donate books they have enjoyed."

Donated books will be used in one of three book projects operated by Assistance League. "We donate more than 30,000 books a year, so we need all the books we can get," Killmer said. The three projects include Operation School Bell, in which low-income children are given a book in addition to a complete outfit of school clothes and health care kit; Birthday Books, in which children choose a book on their birthday; and Book Gifts, which are new books given to children in cooperation with First Book, a nationwide nonprofit organization. First Book is also one of the partners in the book drive.

The Phoenix area book drive is being replicated across the country as part of a nationwide project of National Assistance League for Make A Difference Day. The organization is encouraging all of its 122 chapters to participate in conjunction with its national signature program, Operation School Bell.

"The purpose of Operation School Bell is to provide children in need with the appropriate support and help them succeed in school. Most chapters do that by providing new clothes to children, but many also focus on other essential needs such as health assistance, cultural or higher educational growth and literacy," said Aimee Runyon, Assistance League of Phoenix Executive Director. "Because the Phoenix chapter does so much to improve literacy, this fits right in with our local mission," she added.

For 22 years, USA Weekend and HandsOn Network have joined together on the fourth Saturday in October to sponsor Make A Difference Day, America's largest national day of community service. Make A Difference Day is also supported by Newman's Own, which provides $10,000 donations to charities selected by each of 10 national honorees.

"While this one day in October is Make A Difference Day, the real story is that Assistance League makes a difference every day" for more than 40,000 kids a year." Killmer said. More information is available at http://www.alphx.org or makeadifferenceday.com.

Assistance League of Phoenix has more than 250 members and is part of a national non-profit organization with more than 122 chapters nationwide. Last year, Assistance League of Phoenix members volunteered over 25,000 hours, and spent over $500,000 serving nearly 43,000 children and families in the greater Phoenix community through five Philanthropic Programs. The organization recently celebrated 50 years of service to the Phoenix community.

PHOTO CAPTION:

A boy from Carol G. Peck School enjoys his new book.

Boutique public relations firm with clients in higher education, real estate development, property management, commercial debt collections and micro-farming. For more information, please contact us at (602) 549-0008