WHAT IS THE LAKE CHELAN VALLEY ROTARY BOOK BUDDIES PROGRAM?

Supporting education is a core cause of Rotary International and Lake Chelan Rotary Club. Our goal is to
strengthen the capacity of communities to support basic education and literacy, reduce gender disparity in
education, and increase adult literacy. The Lake Chelan Rotary Book Buddies Program began in December of
2021 with a desire to help instill a love of reading in local elementary school students by visiting and reading
together with them and promote reading at home by providing books for children to take home as their own and
read with family members.
Initially, due to COVID, we were unable to read in person in the schools. Rotary provided books for students,
while we eagerly awaited returning to our plan to read with students.
2022/23 - Book Buddy volunteers visited the classrooms at Morgan Owings Elementary (MOE) monthly to
read to the second-grade classes. Additionally, each month students would choose a book that most interested
them to take home.
In the Manson Elementary School, 7 volunteers read with 14 second graders with reading difficulties in a one-
on-one program. All second graders at Manson were given books to take home monthly as well.
Additional books were provided for students to take home over summer and Christmas vacation. For summer
vacation 5 books were given for summer reading to each second grader at both schools. Third graders at
Manson and first graders at MOE were given 2 books each.
In 2022/23 approximately 2,200 books were given out to excited local students.
2023/24 - The program at MOE was expanded to include both first and second graders, and Book Buddy
volunteers read in the classrooms twice a month. Plus, every student in each grade received one book a month.
At Manson elementary, the one-on-one program was expanded to include third graders as well as second
graders. All second and third graders receive a book each month. Extra books were provided for children to
choose from for Christmas break and summer reading.
We were also able to participate in 3 Scholastic book fairs, where students were given funds to allow them to
choose books.
The result is in 2023/24 we gave out more than four thousand books, with a total of 31 volunteers reading at
MOE and Manson Elementary schools.
We also added Holden Village School children to our program. We were able to let them purchase books from
Scholastic books.
2024/25 - The program at MOE was expanded to include all six grades, K-5, with reading in each classroom
once a month. Each student in every grade also were given one book a month, plus at Christmas they were
given an additional two books, and before the summer break each student was given five books.
At Manson elementary ongoing construction/remodeling limited our one-on-one program to just thirty-seven
second graders. However, all second and third graders received a book each month with extra books provided
for children to choose from for Christmas break and summer reading.
In 2024/25 over 5,000 books were given to some happy kids at MOE, Manson Elementary, and Holden Village.