Twice a week, families and educators gather at the Maryland Book Bank in Baltimore City, in the Woodberry neighborhood, just three miles from Loyola’s campus. When you walk into the warehouse, shelves line the walls with thousands of children’s books sorted by genre and a display up front highlighting books for the holidays, all of which is an effort to distribute books to under-resourced schools and communities. 

This initiative opens doors for Baltimore children to pick their next read– an opportunity that is rather inaccessible due to the lack of accessibility of books in the city. Book Bank Program Coordinator J Lisak said the non-profit is a free service that emphasizes book choice, an effective method for increasing literacy among students.

“Research shows us that children that pick out their own books are more likely to read them and are more likely to keep them for long term, which heightens literacy levels, which has a trickle effect all the way up to more success and higher education,” Lisak said. “I think what we do is really expanding that access by giving away free material… by targeting those early literacy years and making sure that children really choose what they’re reading.”

The organization receives the bulk of its books from public donations, with books being new or gently used. The Maryland Book Bank website states they accept “all kinds of books, whether they are for children or adults,” which helps to cultivate a wide variety of books for children of various economic backgrounds.

Maryland Book Bank Program Director Kim Crout said that during her 12-year tenure, she’s learned how the organization promotes book equity through its programming– an effort that not only serves the community but the environment. Crout stresses that an important part of her work is diverting these books from the landfill by redistributing them in the community.

However, this work cannot be done without the work from volunteers. Volunteers sort through book donations and distribute them when the facility is open to the public. 

“Volunteers are kind of the heart of everything we do.  So, we have a lot of volunteers that come in throughout the year to sort and organize books for all the programs that we have,” Crout said.

The latest initiative from the Maryland Book Bank is the Bookmobile. The Baltimore Ravens gifted the truck in 2016 as a  Mobile Home Library to further push the organization’s mission to spread literacy.

The Bookmobile started by visiting Title One schools in Baltimore City, allowing students to pick out up to 10 free books to keep and take home. Crout notes that to be designated a Title One school, at least 50% of enrolled children currently live below the poverty line.

“It really made sense for us to go to those schools, because our whole mission is to go where the need is,” Crout said. “You know, we talk a lot about book equity and one of the ways to find those communities who are in most need and provide our services there.”

The Bookmobile also branches out to other counties in Maryland, including Howard, Baltimore, and Prince George’s County. In addition to this, the Bookmobile can be seen at local community events and festivals.

Lisak said an impactful part of their job is getting to provide for the Baltimore community. They believe it is a community that needs it the most.

“I love this job because what we do really matters. I see it every day when I go to schools and interact with children, they’re very excited. They like the program that we have, they like to choose books, they’re excited about reading,” Lisak said. 

Additionally, Crout highlights how rewarding it is to foster a student’s self-esteem through the ownership of books and self-choice. She likes to tell a story about a parent who to came to them, after teaching her child to read on cereal boxes,

“She didn’t have any books at home for her child to read, ” Crout said. “… Parents know that reading is important. They know that books are important.”

The Maryland Book Bank welcomes groups and individuals willing to volunteer via sign-up. The Book Bank is located on Union Avenue and is open to the public on Wednesdays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and is currently accepting donations 24/7. More information on upcoming events can be found on The Maryland Book Bank’s Facebook and Website.