Point Boro Middle School Collects Thousands of Books for Children’s Home Society

The National Junior Honor Society and other students at Point Pleasant Borough's Memorial Middle School recently collected 2,531 books for the Children's Home Society Of New Jersey.

"The National Junior Honor Society came up with the concept to share the gift of reading with those less fortunate," said Honor Society Advisor Ellen Keelan.

"The entire school got involved and for three weeks the students collected appropriate books for children in pre-kindergarten through grade eight," she said.

Keelan, also a middle school Language Arts teacher, said the goal was to collect 500 books over a three-week drive during the spring. However, that number was significantly surpassed with the students collecting 2,531 books.

"I really have to credit the members of the National Junior Honor Society for their involvement," continued Keelan, noting that the students hung posters, collected and counted books and organized them by reading level.

"I'm very proud of the way the entire school embraced this cause," said Principal Gary Floyd. "Sometimes we can take for granted that many young people have limited accessibility to books.

"I think this book drive helped to bring attention to this situation," he continued. "I'd like to commend Mrs. Keelan, the National Junior Honor Society and all the students that generously donated in the book drive."

The idea for the book drive sprang from the Read Across America Day on March 2, when Theodor Geisel, the author of the Dr. Seuss books, would have been 107.

More commonly known as Dr. Seuss, Geisel published 46 beloved children's books fostering a love of reading among generations.

Imaginative use of trisyllabic meter opened doors to fantastical worlds of mischievous cats in hats, colorful eggs and ham, and other unusual beasts like Sneetches, Grinches and of course the Lorax.

In recognition of Dr. Seuss's contributions to the literary world, the National Education Association had proclaimed his birthday Read Across America Day.

Read Across America is a day for communities to join together in celebration of reading.

From dressing in character costumes, to Seuss readings and art projects, Read Across America is an important event in the Point Pleasant School District. Seuss-themed events take place district-wide among all grade levels.

For the seventh year in a row, the borough High School's Performing Arts Department hosted a Read Across America Festival for the community. The free event included a variety of family theater skits based on favorite children's books.