East Hartford Rotary Nearing Culmination of Bookmobile Project

ImageThe final pieces of the Bookmobile Project are falling into place for the Rotary Club of East Hartford.  The project is part of a joint effort among a number of donors:  the Rotary Clubs of Central Calcutta and Calcutta Maidan, India and their District; the Rotary Club of East Hartford, CT and its District 7890; Goodwin College; Freightliner of Hartford located in East Hartford; and, Rotary Foundation which is providing a Matching Grant through its grant program.  All in, about $45,000 will go to the purchase and outfitting of a new Sprinter van for the Town of East Hartford's Public Library.  The library staff will be using the van in its outreach programs, bringing books and other materials to schools, parks, senior centers and areas in town with residents who cannot easily access the main library on Main Street.

April 17th is National Bookmobile Day, which celebrates the history of this unique way to bring books to the public and increase literacy, a major focus of Rotary International.  The first bookmobile in the United States (in the form of a horse-driven wagon!) originated in April, 1905 by Mary Lemist Titcomb, a librarian in Washington County, Maryland. As noted by Titcomb, “No better method has ever been devised for reaching the dweller in the country. The book goes to the man, not waiting for the man to come to the book.” Over a century has passed since this statement was made, and yet this is not a far cry from our current goal of ensuring library access to all.

The East Hartford Bookmobile will be presented at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 22nd, 2013 at 8:00 am at Freightliner of Hartford.  The committee from the Rotary Club of Calcutta will be attending via Skype, along with a number of other local people from town government, the library groups and staff, Goodwin College and Freightliner of Hartford.  Congratulations to all for this wonderful collaborative effort to promote literacy!