7 Ways to Give Weeded Books a Second Life!
First things first, don’t gift a dirty book!
If a book is not in good enough condition (dirty, torn, ripped) that you would take it yourself or gift to a friend then perhaps it isn't in the best condition to donate to someone else. Discarding a book (to the trash) that is in rough condition does not diminish the value it held before that point, so don't feel bad!
Sell Them Through A Foundation or Friends Group
Giving books a second life through book sales can benefit the buyer in giving them a new book to love as well as benefit the library through new funds for the foundation to use in support of the library.
Gift Them To A Nursing Home
Nursing home residents are often happy to have both visitors AND different forms of entertainment to pass the time. Giving regular donations of weeded or discarded books to the nursing home can help foster a strong community relationship and give those books fresh readers.
Use Books As Supplies For A Program
Old books are great for all sorts of programs from creating a hidden safe, to cutting the pages for book art, to removing the cover and replacing the insides with blank paper to create a secret journal. Small utility knifes such as THESE are great for detailed cutting projects!
Take Them To A Park
Find a community activity, lunch at the park, or regular community gathering place to take weeded books as giveaways and get books into more hands while building new community connections! Make some fun stickers or buttons, take some snacks, or plan a quick activity and give away books while engaging your community!
THIS sticker maker is so simple to use and is great if you want to personalize stickers in small batches, kids can even design their own!
Donate Them To A Correctional Center
Juvenile detention centers, prisons, or local correctional centers can be great places to donate weeded items. However, they often have very strict requirements for what can be donated, how donations are accepted/sorted, etc. Make sure to contact them well in advance to make sure you meet all requirements to donate books.
Donate Them to a Hospital
Many hospitals will welcome books in good condition as something to offer their more long-term patients for entertainment/reprieve. However, there are often requirements on how donations are to be made or what items can be accepted so make sure to check with them before showing up with books!
If you do donate books to a hospital or care center make sure to include some bookmarks or stickers that will point community members back to your library so they can come visit when they are able!
Give Them Away!
IF all else fails, put weeded books on a table in your hallway with a "FREE" sign and they will get picked up in no time and taken to new homes where they will get a second life!
Do you find yourself having trouble getting to this point? Not knowing which books should stay and which should go? Check out THIS post on “Overcoming The Mental Block of Weeding!”
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