A DREAM come true…Community Read to celebrate 100 years of reading!

In addition to my work as an author I am Winthrop’s Play Outside Coordinator tps://www.facebook.com/WinthropPlaysOutside/ and The Winthrop Schools Service Learning Coordinator.http://www.winthropschools.org.

As the Service Learning Coordinator I have dreamed and often talked about how the Winthrop Schools might co- host a community read with our fabulous public library.http://www.baileylibrary.org. All I needed was a book and an author. Last December I read Cynthia Lord’s A Handful of Stars http://www.cynthialord.com/ and knew I found the book! I lent my copy to a 6th grade teacher who read the book to her class and she told me the students wanted to make blueberry enchiladas and paint bee houses.I knew I had a book and activities, now all I needed was the author!

2016 is the 100 birthday of the Bailey Library so I pitched the idea in mid- winter to the library director, Richard Fortin, as a community read to celebrate 100 years of reading. As soon as Cynthia Lord confirmed her June 21st visit to Winthrop I started handing out the book and by June, thanks to many teachers and librarians , grades 2-8 had listened to some or all of the story . I delivered seven copies to Adult Education and twelve to the high school for their book club. Many , many adults checked the book out too!

Before Cynthia’s visit we had four intergenerational events at the library. Deb Barnett from the Eat Well Program showed us how to make yummy blueberry enchiladas https://extension.umaine.edu/food-health/eat-well/. Marilyn Meyerhans, the owner of Lakeside Orchard ,http://www.lakesideorchards.com talked about the role of migrant workers in Maine and at her orchards.

Middle School students and the public decorated bee houses and we had a lively community discussion about the book. Cynthia’s wonderful , informative talk about how and why she wrote her story was a perfect way to end our community read. I was thrilled to be involved in this celebration of reading.http://www.centralmaine.com/2016/05/26/winthrop-library-plans-community-read/

WMS teacher Chris McEwan and Cynthia Lord