James Patterson Supports Walnut Elementary School Library with Grant

WALNUT, CA —It's the stuff of stories. Every author loves hearing of children who have a heart for reading, especially mystery and suspense author James Patterson. In November, Walnut Elementary received a grant in from the bestselling author to support its school library.

In addition, Scholastic Reading Club will match each dollar of Patterson’s donation with “bonus points” that teachers can use to acquire books and other materials for their classrooms.

The school received a total of $2,000 through the ‘Patterson Pledge’ and was selected from thousands of applications from across the country.

“We are excited to upgrade the technology in our library,” said elementary learning specialist Jill Takayama.

The school plans to launch an eBar so that students can read electronically on devices. The library will have tablets and laptops loaded with high quality e-books.

In March, James Patterson and Scholastic Reading Club announced that Patterson would donate $1.75 million to save school libraries nationwide in the second installment of his School Library Campaign.

To date, Patterson has donated $3.5 million to school libraries nationwide. The amazing outpouring from schools combined with the continued generosity of renowned author helped solidify a second year of grants to help more children have access to books.

#PattersonPledge! Walnut Elementary librarian Debbie Palmer and student Hannah Phan thank author James Patterson for a library grant the school received on Nov. 18.

Walnut Elementary School Photo