As the holiday season approaches, we here at the Foundation for BCPL like to take the time to reflect upon what has transpired during the course of the previous 12 months. Birthdays, holidays, family celebrations, career accomplishments, as well as local, national and world events — both inspiring and challenging — clearly, so much can change over such a short period of time. In 2016, the Foundation was able to accomplish many wonderful things for BCPL. We were able to fund renovations of both Storyville early learning centers, sponsor BC Reads (Baltimore County’s first countywide reading initiative) and Summer Reading Club, contribute to the Hereford Branch renovations and start a microgrant program that gave out almost $10,000 to BCPL branches, departments and programs. All thanks to supporters like you.
Those are all success stories, but there are so many more. Your generosity helps us write success stories every day. For instance, Parkville Branch librarian Christina Miller was talking to a mom of one of their reading buddies, and the mother shared a great testimonial about the impact their program is having on her daughter. Her daughter started attending both the Reading Buddies and the PAWS to Read programs this fall because her daughter struggled a bit with her reading. Recently, her daughter’s teacher told the mom, “I don’t know what you have been doing differently, but keep it up! You daughter’s ability and confidence in reading has improved drastically over the last couple of months!” The mother said, “Who would have thought that 45 minutes a week with a reading buddy, plus reading to some dogs once a month would have such a great impact!”
Parkville’s Reading Buddies program was one of the recipients of the inaugural Give ‘Em What They Want grants. We’ve compiled some compelling statistics that demonstrate a few more examples of how your past support has helped BCPL customers Explore, Learn, Create and Connect. Visit the Help Us Write Success Stories page to explore the info graphics and read a few more success stories — accounts from actual customers and staff who were inspired to share how much the services at BCPL have positively impacted them and their communities.