Book bonanza in Black Tickle
A teacher's modest goal of raising enough money for 19 new books has proven so successful, other schools will get to reap the literary rewards.
"We got boxes and boxes of [books] and they're still coming in … We tripled the goal that I wanted to raise, fund-wise." says Krista Conway, a teacher at St. Peter's School in Black Tickle, Labrador.
"[The kids] are very excited … There is a lot of selection they would have not normally had."
Conway originally partnered with a Coles bookstore in her hometown of Corner Brook, while she was home for Easter break. Twenty per cent of sales during a two-hour window on April 19 went to a fund to buy new books for the students.
"But when I shared it on social media and started spreading it through word of mouth, people really liked the event," she told CBC Radio's On The Go.
'It means more than you think'
For Jaiden Keefe, a Grade 10 student at St. Peter's, the response from people — some as far as Wales, U.K. — has been incredible.
"Thank you, thank you so much. It means more than you think," she said.
"We don't have a lot here, so having all this come makes you feel kind of special, you know?"
Conway wants other students to share that sentiment, and that's why many of the books the school received are on the move.
"The students came up with an idea — they're going to pay it forward and actually donate to another school further up on the coast," she said.
Conway said this experience has shown her how strong the human connection can be over something so simple and universal as the love of reading.
"It just really means a lot, especially in a small remote area of the province to know that people are concerned, they care and that they are so generous."
