Wanna do something good?

Wanna do something good for (virtually) no cost?

My friend Em teaches English to middle school kids at a (surprise, surprise) underfunded middle school in Oregon. Em writes

My kids need books. Our classroom library? Dismal. Our budget? Tiny. Our school's library? Shitty... If you guys have books, ANY books, not just books kids might like but ANY books, would you consider shipping them to me (at my school site)?

Em is working hard to give her students a love of reading, and to do so, she is trying to build up her classroom library with books of all kinds! But she has no money to do so because um, she gets an eensy weensy paycheck.

Like me, you probably have shelves full of books you read once and then haven't picked up since. Don't let them just sit there gathering dust. Put 'em to good use. Send 'em to Em!

Here's how you do it: Go through your bookshelves and find all the books you can possibly get rid of (believe me, this kind of purge is actually quite cathartic). Box your books up. Head down to your local Post Office and ship 'em as "Media Mail." Media Mail is a super cheap way to send books. Mail the books to:

Emily Pollard
c/o Rowe Middle School
3606 SE Lake Road
Milwaukie, OR 97222

Then just sit back and feel good about yourself for the rest of the day.

Em closes by saying

I know, I know. Beggars, all. But we're doing all we can to make it so these kids know what the forest is, what books are, and how they can make their lives better. Books save 'em. And the fact is that even buying snacks for four classes of kids comes out of my own pocket. ::shrugs:: ... these kids-- they're pretty f*!$in' awesome. And I had to ask. Thanks, guys, for reading.