Assistance League of St. Louis President Dawn Thomas (left) and Past President Jane Harbron showed off books they were giving away to three children who attend the Urban League’s early childhood learning program and who were with their mother at the Urban League’s Urban Expo Back to School and Community Empowerment Festival.
The ALSTL leaders and 20 ALSTL Books From Friends volunteers spent August 1 in North St. Louis distributing 4,000 age-appropriate books to aspiring readers at this annual event, which attracts thousands each year. This year lines of vehicles came through a gauntlet of volunteers who distributed books, clothing, school supplies, personal protective equipment, toiletries and food.
Volunteers speedily placed everything in trunks and back seats of vehicles. “This collaboration with the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis and the Saint Louis Public Schools provided a great opportunity to help many more children in one day than we could possibly do safely at this time of COVID-19 with our in-school book festivals and other events,” said Dawn Thomas.
