In September, Sandpoint Rotary Club gave Lake Pend Oreille School District a $100,000 check to buy books for pupils. Now, students are receiving their books and the benefits that come with them. 

Through the Book Trust program, teachers help LPOSD’s K-3 students pick out books of choice at their reading level. Each student has a monthly stipend to spend, and schools receive shipments throughout the year. 

According to Hope Elementary Principal Sherri Hatley, program organizer for LPOSD, allowing students to select their own books is key. 

“If you pick out the book, you're more likely to read it,” she said. 

The program came to LPOSD a decade ago when Karen Quill — a Sandpoint resident who sat on the board of the national Book Trust nonprofit — raised funds for the district’s third graders to participate. For several years, the program relied on various funding sources including teacher-written grants and private donations. 

“It's really been a puzzle over the years to make it happen,” Hatley said. 

In 2021, Hatley wrote a grant application to become supported by Sandpoint Rotary’s annual CHAFE 150 benefit bike ride and pitched the project to the club. After a vote from members to select a beneficiary, Hatley’s program prevailed; in the three years since, Rotary has contributed a total of $257,000 to the program, enabling four grade levels of local students to participate.

Rotarian Mel Dick, who organizes the CHAFE ride each year, said supporting the program helps prepare students for success in the classroom and beyond. 

“You learn to read up until about the third grade. Once you go past third grade, you're reading to learn,” he said. 

Dick also noted Idaho’s low national ranking in public education funding and emphasized the importance of ensuring students have the resources they need. 

According to Hatley, the program allows kids to have access to reading material at school and at home. 

“We can teach them to read, but they need to practice it,” she said. “They want to share that love of reading with the other people in their families.” 

Additionally, the program ensures family income doesn’t affect access to books. While many public schools host book fairs for students to buy reading materials, not all families can afford to spend the money. 

“If you're trying to just pay the bills and have gas in your car, purchasing books is a luxury,” said Hatley. “Sometimes, the Book Trust books are the only books they have at home.” 

2024 marked the last year the program will be the primary recipient of the CHAFE proceeds. While Hatley plans to amplify her fundraising efforts going forward and seek new grant opportunities, she expects the program to shrink. 

“We'll probably have to go back to fewer grades ... it's just the nature of when a grant runs out,” Hatley said. “We've been super blessed with being able to offer it for so long.” 

This summer, Sandpoint Rotary voted to award the next grant cycle to a similar cause — LPOSD’s literacy program. For the next three years, the ride’s proceeds will support staff education and help employ reading coaches as part of the district’s “everyone graduates a reader” initiative.