*Dollars represent books donated.

The Library at the Community Center will be a center for learning, literacy, and community building. It will allow children from sixty schools in Ivory Park to have access to books written in a variety of South Africa’s eleven official languages. The library will be targeted particularly for youth and children. However, literacy is an intergenerational problem, so there will be programs for children to learn with and from seniors, older youth, and other adult volunteers. The local schools will also be able to rely on this library for their students. The library will be
designed in colorful and inspiring images, and there is already a story telling circle adjacent to the library to allow time for a celebration of oral traditions, story telling, and reading groups. Literacy is a key to unlocking a better future.

With your help, the Library project will be self-sustaining in 5 years. Our first priority is to furnish and repair a building at the community center to house the library. The building needs painting, electricity, installation of shelves, reading tables and chairs. The second priority is to fill the library with 6,000 books and materials. Our third priority is to employ a tutor and a librarian.

As you develop your individual fundraising goals, it might be helpful to think about how your contributions will be put to use. Here are some of the projected library costs:

$2,000 would pay for the building renovations and furnish the library with shelves, desks, tables and chairs.

$875 would pay for a computer database system to catalog the collection and manage the library.

$1500 would pay the salary of an afterschool teacher/tutor for an entire year.

$500 would pay the salary of a librarian for one month.

$750 would cover the cost for a local librarian to receive a week of professional development training through the University of the Western Cape.

Create an Online Book Registry For Ivory Park
Read to Raise Funds & Turn Used Books Into Cash
Think of the possibilities that will exist for your school and community once students have learned how to work together to use these powerful new online fundraising strategies. By participating in the Campaign for Ivory Park this fall, you will be building your own online fundraising engine for your school and community.

ACT LOCALLY
Volunteer with a local literacy project or public library in your hometown to learn about the challenges in your area and how people are making a long-term difference. Collect used books; sell them to a used bookstore in your community. Donate a portion of the funds you raise to a literacy project or library in your community and the balance to buy books for Ivory Park.

REACH GLOBALLY
Purchase books online through our book registry at kalahari.net (like Amazon.com in South Africa). Educators and librarians in South Africa have identified the books on this registry for age appropriate content and learning goals. The books will be purchased in South Africa, thereby avoiding shipping costs from the US that would double or triple the price of the book.

Host a Read-A-Thon. Have sponsors pledge a contribution for each book you read. Great for elementary and middle level students.

 

Host a fund raising project, and contribute the money earmarked specifically for the purchase of books and furnishing the library through PayPal's Donate Now program. Once the funds are raised, your group will be offered ‘gift options’ allowing you to allocate the money for educational purposes.

Collect used books, sell them online at Cash4books.net, and donate the funds to buy books in South Africa.

Sell books, used CDs, DVDs, computer equipment and other media on The “Keep It!” Campaign’s eBay Giving Works site. Contribute the proceeds to the library for the purchase of books furniture and computers.