So the latest Big Brothers Big Sisters outing with the fabulous sisters Erin and Ebony took us to…OpenBooks, and an incredibly cool volunteering opportunity in Chicago!
What is OpenBooks?
Open Books was founded in 2006 to open Chicago’s first nonprofit literacy bookstore: a two-storied dream where proceeds from the sale of 50,000+ used books on the fun, colorful, comfortable first floor will go to fund a spectrum of unique adult, family, and computer literacy programs upstairs. While they wait for our new building to be ready in spring 2009, they are working with literacy groups around the city to help students of all ages make literacy a fun and fundamental part of their lives.
And they throw a mean volunteer party. When we got there, we were nearly smothered in pizza and donuts and then set to work moving boxes and crates of books across a huge warehouse floor. The girls were hilarious…not only did they graduate within an hour to being on elevator duty on two separate floors with walkie-talkies, they also kept putting their boxes down to paw through them if they saw something interesting (which was like every five minutes.) I was less helpful, ending up at one point with a load of more than 23 boxes of books on my foot. At the end of the event I talked Erin and Ebony out of carrying off two full bags of books and into carrying away just one, crammed to the gills with Jules Verne, Harry Potter, Greek mythology, and Sherlock Holmes.
When OpenBooks opens their Chicago location, I honestly think it will be one of the neatest storefronts in Chicago…to watch their progress and see how its going, track them here.
Oh, and I think they’re all set for books right now, at least my aching foot says so, but there’s a donate link just in case.
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