Reading For a Good Cause

Not only is summer reading helpful for a child's mind, but at the Chelmsford Library it's beneficial for society, too. 

Now, through the beginning of the school year the library is keeping count of the number of hours children read. 

The goal is to have 1,000 kids sign up for summer reading, said Andrea Grant, the children's specialist at the

Grant said if 1000 children sign up, then the Friends of the Library organization will donate $500 to the Red Cross.

The Friends of the Library is a nonprofit run by volunteers that help supplement the cost of some of the things the library might need, said Mary Kramer, book sale coordinator for the group. 

An additional $250 will be donated if 500 children each return one sheet for a total of 5,000 hours read, said Grant.

When a child signs up they receive a sheet with 10 clocks on it. For every hour they read, they can color in a clock. Once the sheet is full a child should turn it in to the children's desk, said Grant. 

This helps keep count of how many hours children are reading, said Grant. 

According to Grant, there are 750 kids who have signed up and about 17 sheets have been turned in. 

"That's 170 hours so far," Grant said, "and school just let out last week."

Grant said she is optimistic that the goal will be surpassed like in previous years. 

In the past, Friends of the Library have donated to the Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. With the money, the Freeman group was able to place a bench along the trail. 

The choice to donate to the Red Cross this year was obvious, said Grant. 

With the summer reading theme being "One World, Many stories," the organization chosen had to send the same message. 

"We chose the Red Cross because they help people around world," Grant said.  "There have been all these natural disasters this past year, so our donation has a global perspective."