WAYNESBORO – This summer, Alexander Hamilton Memorial Free Library (AHMFL) received a grant for $5,000 in support of the 2024 Summer Reading Program from the Franklin County Community Fund, a regional foundation of The Foundation for Enhancing Communities (TFEC). The funds will be used to support the staff members running the program.
The Friends of the Library, an organization dedicated to funding AHMFL programming including the Summer Reading program, received less funding than usual during and after the pandemic, causing less funding for the Summer Reading Program. Though the funding slowed, summer reading program attendance has not. This grant from Franklin County Community Fund will aid in continuing to implement the program.
Gina Vitale, AHMFL’s director, says, “A free Summer Reading program is vital to our community, helping to prevent summer learning slide for students, especially those furthest from summer enrichment opportunities. We couldn’t be more excited to start planning for the 2024 Summer Reading Program.”
“The Summer Reading program is not just for kids,” says Sue James, co-chair of AHMFL’s board of directors. “Adults and seniors enjoy the program as well. Children are actually more likely to be readers when they read with adults and see adults in their lives reading. Together we create a literacy-rich community for all ages!”
The Summer Reading Program will begin in June 2024 and run through August 2024. The program line-up is comprised of activities for all ages from infancy through adulthood, beginning with a Summer Kick-Off Festival and culminating in a performance by Bright Star Theatre, an education-based theatre troupe.
To learn more about AHMFL’s programs, donate to the library, or find your next read, go to ahmfl.org or visit AHMFL on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Fridays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
