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Author: Laura Le

January 2026 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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Save the date: our annual benefit luncheon for children’s literacy

It’s hard to believe, but spring is quickly approaching and this mean it’s time for our annual benefit luncheon for children’s literacy, A Taste for Reading! We’d love for you to join us for an inspiring hour about how you are making a difference in a child’s life with books.

See you on April 29, 2026 at the King Street Ballroom!

RSVP Today!

Thank you, Trilogy for Kids!

Trilogy for Kids is a dedicated champion of literacy and an enthusiastic supporter of Page Ahead’s mission. Their involvement takes many forms–they serve as book fair helpers, organize book drives, and generously donate through the Trilogy for Kids Foundation, to name a few. Thanks to their incredible support and generous gift this year, Page Ahead will be able to purchase books for four entire schools!

Trilogy for Kids, thank you for helping ensure that every child has the opportunity to discover the joy of reading.

Thank you for giving!

The season of giving is a way for people to show their loved ones and their communities that they care about them. This year, you all raised enough to meet our matching goal more than five times over. We are so grateful for everyone who supports Page Ahead in any way that they can. Children all over Washington will be able to bolster their reading skills, gain confidence, and succeed in all aspects of their lives because of you.

Thank you for building home libraries with us.

Your holiday generosity means more kids get books!

At Page Ahead, the holidays are less about shopping lists and more about reading lists. And you, our amazing community, showed up in a big way this season, donating more than 3,000 brand-new books through holiday book drives!

That’s 3,000 chances for kids to unwrap a story of their own and start building a home library they’ll treasure. A huge thank-you to every group who participated–and extra applause for Barnes & Noble, Secret Garden Books, and the Eastside Welcome Club for spreading the most book joy this season.

What we’re reading…

Nance Daiker volunteers with Page Ahead as one-half of the dynamic duo that manage and maintains our Story Time crafts and kits. This past year, she was awarded the Sarajane Beal Award for Volunteer Excellence. You can read more about Nance’s contributions to Page Ahead. Here’s what Nance has to say about her January reading:

“After the holiday, I usually enjoy reading mysteries. Favorite authors are Louise Penny, Robert Galbraith, and Richard Osman. I’ve just finished The Impossible Fortune by Osman. Currently visiting Three Pines via Penny’s The Black Wolf and looking forward to the next book in my stash, The Hallmarked Man by Galbraith. I enjoy the different approaches that each of these authors employ in solving the mysteries they encounter. A good mystery and a cup of tea in front of the fireplace, ahhh such joy. Now if I were only sitting in a cottage in England.”

December 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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We did it!

To kick off this year’s holiday season–and the season of giving overall–you, our phenomenal supporters, showed up for us.

We’re thrilled to share that we met–and exceeded–our GivingTuesday matching challenge! This year, our generous sponsors, The Schreiber Family Foundation, provided $10,000 in matching funds for all GivingTuesday gifts. With your support, we surpassed our goal, raising over $20,000 to spend on home libraries for kids who need them most.

Your generosity and efforts are what make our work possible. From all of us at Page Ahead: thank you for championing children’s literacy and helping us open the door to a brighter future for young readers.

What your support makes possible: preschool reading

We recently shipped copies of Jabari Tries; Augustus and His Smile; and, Not Norman to 1,700 preschoolers across Washington as part of our Story Leaders program. Teachers read each book using the shared-reading techniques we train them in, and kids get copies of each book take home! Learn more here.

Every child deserves new books

Books are the most important tool for learning–and one of life’s greatest pleasures. No child should grow up without new books in their homes. With your help, they won’t have to.

Please make a gift today. Students like Noa are counting on you!

“Thank you for my new book. I am excited to read this summer. These books are special to me because I don’t have books at home.”

Your tax-deductible gift by December 31, will help us say ‘Yes!’ to even more kids in 2026. Thank you for making a difference!

All of us at Page Ahead send warm holiday wishes to you–our heroes!

This holiday season, we extend our heartfelt thanks to you–our incredible community of supporters. Your advocacy, financial support, and volunteer efforts have brought the joy of choosing new books and building home libraries to thousands of kids across Washington.

What a wonderful gift you’ve given–thank you!

What we’re reading…

Pat Gentino is a Page Ahead volunteer who supports Page Ahead as a book fair helper, office volunteer, and special events volunteer! Here’s what she has to say about a book she recently finished:

“I just finished the book, Kuleana, by Sara Kehaulani Goo. This nonfiction book is about 90 acres of land, on the east side of Maui, that was handed down to her family in 1848 by King Kamehameha III. When a property tax bill arrives that is a 500% increase, the family needs to decide whether to fight the bill to keep the land, or sell to a millionaire outsider. Sara travels from the mainland to reconnect with family still living there and learn more about the history of the land.”

November 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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Mark your calendars for Giving Tuesday!

Mark your calendars for December 2—it’s GivingTuesday!

This year a generous supporter, The Schreiber Family Foundation, has pledged to match all GivingTuesday donations, up to $10,000. That means every dollar you give will be doubled to help us bring Book Up Summer to two schools that might not otherwise be able to participate.

Together, we can give hundreds of kids the power of books and the confidence that comes with being a strong reader.

Phinney Holiday Bookfest

The Phinney Holiday Bookfest will take place on Saturday 11/22 at the Phinney Center from 2pm – 4pm. 

Holiday Bookfest is an annual Seattle tradition on Phinney Ridge each November for book gift shopping, meeting and mingling with local authors who will sign your books, and donating to local literacy causes. 

Donations to Page Ahead will be collected at the event! Come join us for us a fun afternoon in Phinney where you can meet local authors and get some new books for yourself and for kids in Washington.

Holiday Book Shopping

During this giving season, we are so grateful to partner with our friends at Barnes & Noble again this year for their holiday book drives. They have made it extra easy for you to buy books for everyone on your list AND for the kids Page Ahead serves. 

From now – December 15, shop at these Barnes and Noble locations for an easy way to support Page Ahead:

Calling all Future Engineers!

Encourage any high school seniors in your life to apply to the Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship program. The Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship provides high school seniors with up to $40,000 for college plus internship opportunities at Amazon.

Selected students will study computer science while gaining real-world tech experience. Beyond financial support, scholars join a community that provides ongoing mentorship, networking opportunities, and career guidance throughout their academic journey.

Key info at-a-glance:

  • Applications are open now! Deadline to apply is January 15, 2026
  • Up to $40,000 in scholarship funds
  • Summer internship opportunity at Amazon

Eligible students must plan to:

Know a student who might be interested? Share this opportunity with them and their families!

Celebrate different heritages through reading

As Hispanic Heritage Month comes to an end and Native American Heritage Month begins, we encourage you to celebrate different cultures through reading! 

You can find books on our Bookshop.org page that highlight Hispanic and Indigenous authors, stories, and their cultures.

Reading Events

What a fun start to the school year it’s been! We’ve had such a wonderful time with our volunteers and students at reading events.

Volunteers from the Page Ahead community, EY, and First Tech spent 62 hours reading to 184 first graders at 3 different elementary schools.

We are incredibly thankful to our volunteers for inspiring a love of reading in the children in our community.

Ballard GivesBack

This Black Friday weekend, Nov 28th – 30th, shop at Secret Garden Books in Ballard and get great deals on books and gifts for all ages.

Each year, businesses in the Ballard Business Alliance select a charity to support as part of Ballard Gives Back, and our partners at Secret Garden have chosen Page Ahead as their designated charity! A percentage of the proceeds will benefit Page Ahead and help give new books to kids who need them most this holiday season.

What we’re reading…

Sophia Padua has been volunteering with Page Ahead since 2023 as a special events volunteer. You can often find Sophia at tabling events in the community raising awareness and advocating for children’s literacy. Here’s what she has to say about Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain.

“I just finished reading Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain. His shows “No Reservations” and “Parts Unknown” were huge staples growing up in my family’s household. I always thought he was a wonderful storyteller, piecing together his adventures for people to experience from their own homes. Reading Kitchen Confidential was an opportunity to start from the beginning of his career. His voice comes through on every page, and if you were a fan of his, I can’t recommend it enough!”

September 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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We love our volunteers!

Page Ahead volunteers are vital to our ability to reach over 30,000 young readers all across the state. We are so grateful for their help in putting brand new books in the hands of kids who need them most. Volunteers make our programs possible in countless ways: sorting, shelving, and stickering books; maintaining and restocking our Book Oasis libraries; reading with children during Story Time; serving on our committees and Board of Directors; helping kids choose books at Book Up Summer book fairs—and so much more! 

This year, over 500 volunteers gave more than 3,565 hours to ensure EVERY child has the chance to read. We are profoundly thankful to each and every one of them. Thank you, volunteers—you make the magic happen!

And,  an extra-special thank you to the winners of the 2025 Sarajane Beal Award for Volunteer Excellence, Nance Daiker and Linda Hintz!

Nance and Linda began volunteering for Page Ahead in July of 2021 as weekly office volunteers in the Story Time craft center. In preparation for the return of in-person Story Times for the 2021 school year, Nance and Linda quickly began creating new craft kits. They reorganized all the resources for Story Time crafts and over the last 4 years have transformed the craft replenishment process to be much more streamlined and efficient.

This past year has been extra special: Nance and Linda have put in a combined total of over 375 volunteer hours! This is especially impressive considering that Linda was out for a few months recovering from surgery. But, that never slowed them down from replenishing over 440 Story Time craft kits and assembling over 500 craft kits for summer story times at Ballard and High Point. These craft kit totals translate into support for over 1,400 students in our Story Time program. Nance and Linda also delivered over 700 books to their 2 Book Oases this past year, keeping the neighborhoods near Olympic Hills Elementary School and ReWA in Lake City supplied with high-quality children’s books. These two are an amazing team!

Linda and Nance’s passion for Page Ahead, and their many hours of service to all of our programs, help us bring books and the joy of reading to countless schools and children.

Thank you, Nance and Linda! You truly make a difference at Page Ahead!

Community Book Drive at the Mariners

On Tuesday, August 26, while the Mariners played against the San Diego Padres, Mariners Care and PACCAR hosted a book drive to benefit Page Ahead at T-Mobile Park.

Thank you to our volunteers who helped us at the game! Their passion for literacy was the real MVP, helping us smash our Mariners Book Drive record. With their support, we will be able to give away over 1,100 new books to kids who need them most!

Page Ahead’s impact this year

During the 2024 – 25 program year, Page Ahead:

  • Provided 30,0005 kids with 325,141 new books
  • Partnered with 175 preschools, elementary schools, and other community organizations
  • and stocked 19 little free libraries with over 6,300 books!

We extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone who was a part of this journey—it takes many people to make this work possible.

Join our new committee!

We are starting a new committee! Our Social Media/Marketing committee will focus on building strategy, generating content, and discussing metrics/impact. With an increasing need to grow our social media presence, we have decided that the most effective way to expand Page Ahead’s social media presence is to create a committee of dedicated volunteers to help us shine and beat the algorithm. 

Meetings will begin in the fall and will take place monthly from 6pm – 7pm. Meeting dates are still TBD and will be dependent on the interest and availability of interested community members. 

Roles available are:

  • Content Planner
  • Content Creator
  • Community Ambassador
  • Analyst
  • Content Librarian

Each role is anticipated to have about 2-4 hours of work outside of the monthly meetings!

If you’re interested in joining or learning more, please contact Laura.

What we’re reading…

Kim Ferse has been a Page Ahead volunteer since 2017. Her volunteer tenure has spanned many projects. She was an instrumental part of the Book Oasis project through her work with vendors, hosts, and community members. She also works as a summer story time reader and is working on a project to create labels for guiding questions for each of our Story Time books. In her free time, Kim is a playwright and an avid tennis player. 

Here’s what she has to say about the books she is reading: “My 2025 summer reading list is a story of apples and oranges! I am currently reading two books: First is Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe, which I picked up after hearing an NPR interview with the author. I didn’t know anything about the history of the IRA, and I love true stories that read like fiction! The other book I’m reading right now is The Losers Club by Andrew Clements. I am co-reading this middle-grade chapter book aloud over Zoom a half-hour at a time over the summer with Saryn, a 9-year-old girl from New Jersey, as part of a program called “ARK” (Actors Reading with Kids). We’re taking turns reading pages, and it’s silly fun!”

Nance Daiker and Linda Hintz

Posted on by Laura Le

Page Ahead is pleased to present the 2025 Sarajane Beal Award for Volunteer Excellence to Nance Daiker and Linda Hintz.

From left to right: Lisa Ceniceros, volunteers of the year: Linda Hintz and Nance Daiker, and Laura Le

Nance and Linda began volunteering for Page Ahead in July of 2021 after learning about us from Susie and her daughter Annie (long time book donors) in Linda’s knitting group. They started as weekly office volunteers taking on the Story Time craft center. Linda and Nance quickly began the process of creating new craft kits and preparing for Story Times to return to in-person for the 2021 school year. It’s always a challenge inheriting a project already created by someone else, but they eagerly and methodically worked their way through all the various googly eyes, scraps of paper, stickers, and paper plates. They got all the resources for Story Time crafts reorganized and over the last 4 years have transformed the process of craft replenishing to be much more streamlined and efficient.

Linda and Nance also supported the Book Oasis project by helping to restock 3 Oases located in SE Seattle, starting in late 2021. Monthly they would go to their Oases and fill them up with more books. When we had some openings with Oases located in North Seattle, they swapped to 2 Oases located near Olympic Hills Elementary and ReWA in Lake City. Over the past 4 years they have completed over 97 Book Oases restocks, supplying over 3,800 books to the community.

Starting in 2023, Nance and Linda created special story time crafts to go with the garden theme at our new Ballard Locks Summer Story Times. They created unique take home crafts that matched the books being shared at story time: bugs, birds, jellyfish, caterpillar, and my favorite a butterfly. These take-home crafts help enhance the experience of the little kids and families who come to these special story times. I think they might even be the reason that we have seen a dramatic increase in attendance. This summer our average number of kids participating in the summer story times at Ballard is 35 kids!

Linda and Nance also helped create 2 new themes for Story Times: Endangered Species and Community Helpers. It’s a big deal to have entire new themes and kits for Story Times, because it not only includes finding the books, but coming up with the crafts, the flannel story, and the finger play rhymes. And just this past year, Nance and Linda helped a team of Story Time readers make some important updates to some of the existing crafts, so we now have alternate crafts for 7 of the Story Time themes.

Of course, Linda and Nance are no strangers to all the various volunteering activities we have in the Page Ahead office and they have helped with sorting kid thank you’s, stickering Story Leader books, cutting and bundling Book Up Summer bookplates, bundling Book Up Summer bags, and packing those bags and bookplates to ship out to our schools. They stuff thank you envelopes with letters, transfer paper survey responses to the computer, prepare nametags for the luncheon, and always provide important advice to help us improve our systems. And of course they do counting, lots and lots of counting, whether it’s books, small craft pieces, or the bags & bookplates, there is a never ending amount of counting that needs to be done!

This past year has been extra special for Nance and Linda, who have put in a combined total of over 375 volunteer hours, which is extra impressive considering that Linda was out for a few months recovering from surgeries. But, that never slowed them down from replenishing over 440 Story Time craft kits and assembling over 500 craft kits for summer story times at Ballard and Highpoint. These craft totals translate to supporting over 1,400 students in our Story Time program!! This past year they have also been working on adding in stickers with all the questions to the 188 different Story Time books that are in the 48 different themed kits. Nance and Linda also delivered over 700 books to their 2 Book Oases this past year, keeping the neighborhoods near Olympic Hills Elementary School and ReWA (Refugee Women’s Alliance) in Lake City supplied with great children’s books. These two are an amazing team!

Linda and Nance’s passion for Page Ahead and their many hours of service to all of our programs, helps us to support so many schools and children with books and the joy of reading.

Thank you, Nance and Linda! You truly make a difference at Page Ahead!

See previous winners of this award here.

Help Close Our Summer Shortfall for Washington’s Young Readers

Posted on by Laura Le

Page Ahead is facing a serious funding shortfall that could impact the children we serve.

A major corporate partner unexpectedly reduced their support just as we began serving more students than ever. As a result, we now face a serious funding gap. And, as federal budget cuts threaten school budgets, particularly for programs for low-income families, we are receiving more requests for help from our partners.

Page Ahead is not in danger of closing our programs, but we are at a critical point. This shortfall means we may not be able to serve every child currently in our programs, or add new students who need us. Fewer kids will experience the joy of choosing their own books, building a home library, and discovering the magic of reading.

That’s not just disappointing—it’s dangerous. Because when children fall behind in reading, they fall behind in life.

Our most urgent need is to raise $50,000 right now to keep our programs running this summer and into the fall. But, that’s just the start—over the coming months, we need to close a total shortfall of $160,000.  Your gift today helps us stay on track and protect access to books and reading support for kids across Washington.

We’re a community that believes every child deserves the chance to succeed.  That’s why I’m asking for your help today. Whether you can give $50 to support one child, or $1250 to help an entire classroom, your gift is urgently needed and will be put to work immediately.

If you have any questions, please email us at info@pageahead.org or call (206) 461-0123. Thank you for your support for kids and reading!

June 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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All Book Up for Summer (Reading)!

It was a record breaking year for Book Up Summer! Serving 23,638 students in 129 elementary schools here in Washington state, Book Up Summer distributed 299,032 books this year—the most ever since its inception in 2012. 

We could not have done this without the support from all of our volunteers: 207 volunteers gave 664 hours of their time to help ensure that every child has the chance to read this summer. Thank you, volunteers, for all that you do to champion literacy for EVERY child. 

Book Up Summer helps prevent the “summer slide.” Summer slide refers to the phenomenon where during their summer vacation, students lose some of the skills they learned and worked on throughout the school year. When students go home with 12 brand new books that they have self-selected, they are able to practice and work on reading in a way that is exciting and enjoyable to them. This ensures they start the next school year ready to learn and build on their current skills!

Summer Story Times

Happy summer vacation! This year we are once again serving young readers with outdoor story times in the Ballard and High Point neighborhoods. 

If you have a young reader in your life, we would love for you to join us at the Carl S. English Jr. Botanical Gardens at the Ballard Locks for a summer story time session!

This year, we’ve doubled the number of story time sessions. Page Ahead readers will be at the Ballard Locks every Tuesday and Thursday from 11am – 12pm until the end of August.

We hope to see you there!

Thank you NACUA!

The National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA) held its annual conference in Seattle this year and chose Page Ahead as one of the local charitable beneficiaries of the event. Conference attendees were invited to participate in a book drive by purchasing a book to donate at the Page Ahead pop-up shop or bringing one to the conference with them. The book drive was a resounding success, bringing in 411 books for students here in Washington!

Thank you so much to the NACUA attendees for championing literacy for all kids.

Volunteers from BYU and NACUA at the Page Ahead table

Local Business Partner: Old Stove Brewing Co.

On Tuesday, July 8th, please join us at Old Stove Gardens in Ballard as part of their Giving in the Gardens promotion! Page Ahead will have a table there and $1 from every pint sold will be donated to us. 

Bring a friend or a good book and join us on their outside patio for a fun evening. See you there!

Summer reading resources for you

Summer reading isn’t just fun for kids, it’s fun for the whole family. Here are some resources for all ages to get you started. Happy reading!

Summer Reading Challenges:

Adult Book Bingo (King County)

Teen Book Bingo & Kids Book Bingo (Seattle)

Summer Reading Program (Yakima Valley all ages)

Summer Reading Club (Spokane all ages)

Kids Summer Reading Challenge (Sno-Isle)

Summer of Stories (Pierce County all ages)

Seattle Seahawks 12 Pages 

Barnes and Noble Summer Reading Program

BookIt x Pizza Hut: Free Personal Pan Pizza

Real DAWGS Read

Half Price Books Summer Reading Camp

Literacy Events:

Seattle Arts and Lectures has author events year-round

University of Washington iSchool Read-Alongs (virtual)

Check out your local library branch for events

Check out your local independent bookstore to see if they have author events and/or story times scheduled for the summer

What we’re reading…

Annabel Wrightsman has been a volunteer with Page Ahead for the last 2 years. She helps with a variety of projects, from sending books to our school partners to supporting special events. A lover of children’s books, Annabel has worked on writing her own stories and will be starting at the University of Washington’s iSchool in the fall to pursue her MLIS. Here’s what she has to say about a book she’s recently finished:

“I recently read Kristiana Kahakauwila’s middle grade novel Clairboyance, which is a 2025 Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA) Children’s Honor Book. 
It’s a beautiful story about a Hawaiian girl named Clara, who loves to draw, whittle, and help her grandmother tend to the taro patches of their home on Oahu’s North Shore. But Clara does not love how awkward 6th grade has become, which makes her want to move away to live with her dad in Arizona. 
When Clara accidentally gains an ancestral power that allows her to hear what boys are thinking, she thinks she can more quickly make her getaway dream a reality. But things get way more awkward, before, eventually, Clara learns to listen to her heart, make new friends, regain old ones, and deepen her knowledge of her heritage. 
Having grown up in Hawaii, I particularly appreciate Kahakauwila’s deft use of languages (including Hawaiian and the English-based creole language known as Hawaiian Pidgin), and her sensitive depiction of a child navigating long-distance relationships. And as someone who now lives in Seattle, I love that one of Clara’s new friends is from here.”

May 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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Book Up Summer

We are one month into Book Up Summer and what an incredible month it has been! But we’re not done yet—students all over Washington continue to select their 12 free books for summer reading—building their home libraries and sustaining the reading skills they’ve learned this school year. Because of Book Up Summer, students will be able to read to their heart’s content this summer, minimizing summer learning loss, and ensuring that when next school year starts, they’ll be able to hit the ground running. 

Thank you to everyone who has volunteered as a book fair helper already. It is because of each of you that we are able to provide home libraries to even more students this year.

It’s not too late to volunteer! You can sign up for shifts here (registration required if new user) or email Laura to sign your group or company up. See you at the book fair!

Partner Spotlight: Amazon

It’s a 3-peat! Amazon is graciously supporting several of our Seattle schools for the third year in a row. Their support has always gone beyond financial contributions—Amazon team members roll up their sleeves and dive into the joy of being Book Buddies at schools each year. But this year, Amazon volunteers have taken on an extra responsibility in setting up the book fairs, ensuring that every step of the process is smooth sailing for our school partners, and especially for our students.

To Amazon, we say a resounding THANK YOU for making a difference in our city, and shaping the future of our kids—one book at a time!

Getting ‘A Taste for Reading’

It was so exciting to have a completely full house at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel on Wednesday, April 30th for our 22nd annual benefit luncheon, A Taste for Reading. What a treat to spend the lunch hour with a room full of literacy champions! 

The program was full of amazing testimonials and success stories. We were honored to have Governor Ferguson kick us off, sharing his own reading memories and values and reminding us that we can all work together to build a better future for our kids. Keynote speaker, Kathy Emerick, Executive Director of School and Leadership Success for the Kent School District, shared her firsthand experience as an educator and as a mother about the impact that books and reading have on children. Finally, Story Time reader Linda Gainer spoke about how something as simple as reading with children can build strong readers and habits.

If you weren’t able to attend (or if you did attend but would like to relive the event!), you can watch the recorded event here:

Book Drive Highlight: Annie W.

Annie W (left) poses with her books and Page Ahead staff member, Laura Le

Annie W. is one of Page Ahead’s youngest and most active supporters. Each year Annie partners with Magnolia’s Bookstore in her neighborhood, and hosts a book drive for Page Ahead. This year, Annie collected over 40 brand new books worth over $500!

We are so excited to see young leadership helping support literacy for all. Thank you, Annie, for sharing your love of reading with other children in Washington!

You gaveBIG!

We’d like to thank all of the donors who gave to Page Ahead for GiveBIG 2025! Thank you for making sure all kids get a great start with reading. Your gifts helped give more than 75 children a home library of their own this summer.

Dear Donors, thank you SO much for paying for our books

and thank you for your act of kindness

and I can’t wait to read all my boooks.

Sincerely, Leila

Literacy Fair with TeamRead

On Sunday, June 15th, Team Read and the Seattle Public Library will be hosting a literacy fair at the Beacon Hill Branch Library. 

Page Ahead will have a table at this event to share information to families about our programs and our involvement in their children’s schools. Want to help? You can volunteer at this event as a set-up volunteer or as an information table volunteer. Please email Laura if you’re interested!

The literacy fair will have summer reading resources for families, sign up help for library cards, and entertainment for the kids with snacks and a magic show! We hope to see you there!  

Meet Sofia – Our Newest Team Member

Hi, I’m Sofia! I’m a rising junior at Loyola University Chicago studying Environmental Studies and Anthropology with a minor in Education Policy. I’m joining Page Ahead as a Programs Intern this summer to help our events run smoothly and start some planning for next year’s Story Leaders.

I grew up in Seattle and was an avid reader, often getting in trouble for staying up past my bedtime to finish a book. I was inspired to go into education by my mom, a former first-grade teacher, and my partner, a preschool teacher. I love being able to connect with kids and watch them grow their skills. I have a strong sense of justice and am passionate about equity in education. In my free time, I enjoy crocheting, yoga, and listening to podcasts.

I just finished reading Wicked by Gregory Maguire. I have been familiar with the Wizard of Oz film and Wicked the musical for a long time and was surprised it took me so long to pick up the book. It is a prequel to the Wizard of Oz that explains the life of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, and why she became evil. It explores and questions the nature of good and evil. It’s more different from the musical/movie than I was expecting!

April 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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Building a better future, one book at a time

Tomorrow is the big day and we’re buzzing with excitement here at Page Ahead. We’re so excited to meet new friends and enjoy familiar company on April 30th.

This event is not possible without the support of our sponsors. Their generosity will keep kids reading for years to come.

If you’re unable to attend the event, you can still support our effort to build home libraries by making a gift today. All new monthly gifts of $50 or more will be matched by our sponsors! Double your impact—and let’s double the number of home libraries in Washington state together.

Thank you everyone, sponsors and supporters alike, for building a better future, one book at a time with us.

GiveBig 2025

Mark your calendars and set your alarms—GiveBig will be taking place from May 6 – 7! For a full 24 hours, you can come together with your fellow Washingtonians to spend the day giving back to your communities.

Together, we can get that giving feeling and put books directly in the hands of kids who need them most.

Early giving is now open if you’d like to get a head start on the fun—make your gift now!

Book Up Summer

The Page Ahead book fairs have begun! Now through the end of the school year in June, more than 23,000 kids across Washington will select their 12 brand-new books to keep and read over the summer. The Book Up Summer program gives these young readers the tools and incentive they need to read during summer vacation. If you’d like to help kids select books at a book fair, sign up for shifts here (registration required if new user) or email Laura to sign your group or company up! 

This year, schools received additional shipments of books highly requested by students and their families! To better support multilingual learners, schools received extra books in several world languages, including (but not limited to!) Vietnamese, Russian, Portuguese, and Somali. In addition, copies of Dogman: Mothering Heights were distributed to all schools with participating 2nd graders. THANK YOU to our amazing community for providing the support we need to expand Book Up Summer and to provide home libraries for even more children this year.

Norwescon 2025

We are so excited to have been the community partner of this year’s Norwescon! Norwescon is the largest science-fiction and fantasy convention in the Pacific Northwest. Although the primary focus of the convention is on literature, Norwescon is large enough to provide a venue for many of the other aspects of sci-fi and fantasy, such as comics, costuming, art, gaming, and more! Attendees were encouraged to bring in art, props, jewelry, books, games, etc. to be part of an art show and silent auction to raise funds for Page Ahead.

Thank you, Norwescon, for championing children’s literacy with us! We are so grateful for your support in building home libraries and nurturing lifelong readers.

What we’re reading…

Genise Lee has been a dedicated Page Ahead volunteer since 2008. Over the years, she has generously shared her clerical expertise–supporting everything from data entry to bundling bookplates. Genise’s steadfast presence has made her an integral part of Page Ahead’s story.

She recommends Lab Girl by Hope Jahren. “The book is entertaining and well-written, reflecting on a fascinating life pursuing the wonders of botany through a very human lens.”

Now a well-respected geobiologist, Hope Jahren’s memoir details her journey to opening her own lab in Hawaii. The story explores her experiences growing up in rural Minnesota, living with bipolar disorder, and finding friendship and love in unexpected places. Hope invites all readers to take a look outside and find something green. 

Genise loves to read memoirs, and she admires scientists whose dedication and labor are not well understood and usually underappreciated. 

March 2025 newsletter

Posted on by Laura Le

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Don’t forget to RSVP!

The students are hard at work practicing their Readers’ Theatre performance! Come watch their jubilant debut and enjoy a lunch on us at this year’s A Taste for Reading luncheon! April 30th is just around the corner, and we’d love to see you at the Fairmont Olympic Hotel to learn how you can build a better future, just one book at a time.

Would you like to help us fundraise for this event? Click here to become a table captain! Or you can register as a guest here.

Even if you can’t attend, you can still make an impact and put books into the hands of kids who need them most! Click here to make a donation to build home libraries.

Celebrating National Reading Month

We had so much fun this month reading with students for National Reading Month! Page Ahead volunteers celebrated with kindergartners and first-graders at schools in Seattle and Tukwila. After picking and choosing a book to take home and keep forever (along with a highly-coveted volunteer-decorated bookmark), the students had those very same books read aloud to them by our wonderful volunteers.

Thank you so much to the 40 volunteers from Boeing, Coho RE, DPR Construction, First Tech, People’s Bank, and Pitchbook who came and spread their love of reading to over 200 students. Your enthusiasm will leave a lasting impact on these students and will encourage a lifelong love of reading in them. 

Want to join us at our next reading event? Let us know where to send your invitation.

Local Event — Meet the Author: Tracie D. Hall

Just next week, on Friday, April 4, 2025, the Women’s University Club is hosting Tracie D. Hall as part of their meet-the-author series.

We hope you can join Tracie and the WUC to learn about “Information Islands: How Disinformation and the Decline in Human Literacy are Dividing Us and What Can We Do About It.”

Widely known as a “Warrior Librarian,” Tracie was on the Time100 List of Most Influential People in 2023, served as the executive director of the American Library Association, and is now a distinguished practitioner in residence at the University of Washington iSchool.

This event is open to supporters of Page Ahead. Tickets are still available—buy a ticket here! In honor of this event, the WUC is hosting a book drive to benefit Page Ahead! All guests are encouraged to bring a children’s book to donate or purchase one from the Secret Garden Books pop-up shop at the event.

Happy Anniversary, Book Oasis!

Volunteers Peggy (left) and Graham (right) restocking a Book Oasis Little Free Library.

DAs we celebrate another year of Book Oasis, we’re reflecting on the big impact that these little free libraries have in the community. The little free libraries help increase book circulation in neighborhoods that are considered book deserts. Each Book Oasis is filled with children’s books and helps bolster home libraries in their neighborhoods. Check out our website to see where you can find one of our 19 Book Oases! 

Since its inception in 2021, the Book Oases have circulated 27,214 books and have been restocked 679 times by volunteers! This is equivalent to 2,000 volunteer hours! We are so grateful to all of the volunteers who have given their time and energy into making Book Oasis such a massive success!

As Laurie Rich, one of our restock volunteers, told us: “I am SO grateful for this library. Every time I see it being used, it makes my day. I introduced myself to a mother who had stopped there with her three kids, and she was also the mother to the first child I tutored with the Reading Partners tutoring program. This Oasis is helping raise readers!”

What we’re reading…

Robin Sanders has volunteered with Page Ahead for over ten years. She helps weekly in our office, at special events, and was one of the key volunteers who helped us bring the Book Oasis project to life. Here’s what she has to say about a book she recently finished and one she is currently reading:

“I just finished The God of the Woods by Liz Moore, a mystery about two children who disappear, several years apart, from a wealthy and troubled family. The story is set in the Adirondacks–at the family’s estate, an adjacent summer camp, and the surrounding rural community. It explores the traps of class (both in poverty and wealth) and also questions of community, belonging, and loyalty. The minor characters contribute to the story in satisfying ways, and the plot maintained its momentum and cohesiveness through to the end.

Another book that I’m currently reading also features things that go bump in the woods: The Last Wildlife Control Officer in British Columbia. This memoir, by Dennis Pemble, describes a 30-year career tracking cougars and bears throughout BC. It features notable moments like relocating a bear via helicopter, having a cougar wake up from a tranquilizer while still in his truck, and (most unexpectedly) rounding up an ostrich at the airport. I like memoirs in the ‘unsung heroes’ category, and this definitely fits the bill.”