DC Books to Prisons has received xxx letters and sent out over xxx packages to federal and state prisons in xxx states.
we have also done other things, such as...
Train xxx new volunteers apply for ??? grants other book drives, fundraisers, donations, whatever
Independent Bookstore Day
Presentation at Silver Spring Library
Georgetown Day Kids
MissionStatement
DC Books to Prisons works to provide a wide variety of informative, educational and enjoyable reading material, free of charge, to inmates in US prisons. We prioritize inmates in underserved regions and respond to individual inmates' requests, whenever possible including short personal notes (which are sometimes as important as the books we send) Efforts include selected secondary projects to address the gap in resources and access to reading material
We believe that books can change lives. They can change the way people view the world, other people, and themselves, provide an education, provide a vocabulary, and open minds to new possibilities
IndependentBookstoreDay bookdriveandfundraiser
In April and May we once again held an online book drive for two weeks in conjunction with Independent Bookstore Day on April 26 Along with the book drive, a donor matched the purchase price of all books with a cash donation And it was a smashing success! Over 200 books were donated off our Politics and Prose and bookshoporg independent bookstore wishlists, which was matched with a $XXXX donation!
Booksfor bookclubs
With some help from our Independent Bookstore book drive, we were able to send new books to the prison book clubs we support in three states Copies of Catcher in the Rye, Slaughterhouse Five, The Light Between Oceans, All About Love, The Four Agreements, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and ??? were sent out in May
After talking to a volunteer who was visiting Los Angeles, Chevalier’s Books contacted us about hosting a book drive for prison libraries. We gave them our list of prison libraries that have contacted us requesting help, and for the month of November they held a fundraising drive coinciding with book talks on prison issues, to great success In the end they sent over 500 books to 17 different facilities in 15 states.
DCPunkRock FleaMarket
We tabled for the first time at the DC Punk Rock Flea Market which was packed with people eager to here about us and what we do Zines were sold, names were added to our email list (maybe yours!), some people came and to be trained as volunteers!
Georgetown DaySchool
Georgetown DaySchool
PublicDefenderbookdrive
We again hosted students from the GDS Summer Policy Institute in June who have chosen to focus on criminal justice Visiting our room at The Foundry, they learned about the work we do to serve the incarcerated and answered some letters themselves
We again hosted students from the GDS Summer Policy Institute in June who have chosen to focus on criminal justice. Visiting our room at The Foundry, they learned about the work we do to serve the incarcerated and answered some letters themselves.
The producers of the documentary Public Defender have been holding book drives across the country for books to prisoner organizations along with screenings of their film, and in January we were the beneficiaries of their work for the second time
Giving Tuesday/Endof-Year fundraising drive
A large percentage of our yearly fundraising comes in at the end of the year, and this year our year-end fundraising drive was boosted by a very generous $10,000 matching donation from an anonymous donor. This goal was more than exceeded by ### smaller donations that allowed us to me our 2024 organizational fundraising goals. Thanks to all of you who helped us out!
For the month of May the President Lincoln’s Cottage museum held a book drive for much needed and appreciated books on mental health MentalHealthbook drive
Brigadier General CharlesE. McGeeLibrary (SilverSpring)
On May 17, engaged volunteer David Reeves spoke for an hour at the Brigadier General Charles E. McGee Library (Silver Spring) about DC Books to Prisons, the work we do and how we do it. This was followed by many questions at the information table.
Trainingnew volunteers
As an all-volunteer organization, our work is possible only because of the dedication of volunteers. People who wish to volunteer with us must first attend an orientation and training. The number of people who want to be trained keeps growing, to the extent we expanded our training team and have been holding training sessions twice a month! Since January, we have trained thirty-five people while cutting a month off the time on the waiting list.
If you have yet to be trained as a volunteer and would like to, please email us at btopdc(at)gmail.com to be added to our orientation wait list. Those on the wait list will be notified via email when new training times are scheduled
Comics, Manga, and RPGs are some of our most requested books. On April 10 our friends at Fantom Comics in DC hosted a Mario Cart Grand Prix fundraiser that helped stock our shelves.
Whattocome inthenextsix months...
Over the next six months we will explore ways to expand our work, both within the states we serve and possible expansion to new states. We will ?????? Board elections
We will do Banned Books Week and Banned Books book drive and the Giving Tuesday/Yearend fundraiser. What else will we do?
Apply for DC Zine Fest and Punk Rock Flea Market etc
Donatetoour Postagefundraiser now!
Our largest expense is postage, and like everything else the cost keeps going up and up. In 2018, the cost of a one-pound media mail package was $2.66. As of today the media mail one-pound rate is $4.13. The large majority of packages we send weigh 2-3 lbs, so after sending hundreds of packages a month that could all add up! Help us get those books in the mail to the people who need them today!
