The Books2Africa project was started in 2007 by Ewald Visser when he discovered a severe shortage of books in schools in Africa.
Ewald completed the first five book drives, but handed the reigns over to the Bentonville/Bella Vista Daybreak Rotary Club in Bentonville, Arkansas when he went to college. Under the capable leadership of Rotarians Ed Wheeler and Bob Alberson, five more book drives had been completed. The 10th annual book drive had just been completed.
With the amazing support received from Bentonville and Gravette School principals, teachers, and students, as well as all the support from companies and individuals both in their own community and further afield, all ten book drives have been resounding successes. More details about these book drives are given on the following few pages.
From the first 1,100 books that were sent to South Africa in 2007, the project has continued to grow every year. So far, thanks to a lot of generous contributions, more than 150,000 books have been donated over the past ten years. They have been sent to South Africa and its neighboring countries to relieve a bit of the book shortage there. Just imagine the impact these books can have on the lives of so many children.
But the work is not finished. The need for books is very real and very pressing. The next book drive will be in held in February 2017 at the schools in Bentonville. Please go through your bookshelves and donate as many books as you possibly can. The biggest demand is for Children’s books - Kindergarten level through High School, fiction as well as non-fiction.
If you are unable to participate in the book drive at the Bentonville Schools, just drop us a line below, and you will be contacted to arrange for a time and place to pick up your donation.
