Gail Borden Foundation - Thank You to the Community

Thank You to the Community!
This year’s pandemic has challenged our library community in so many ways, affecting every aspect
of our lives. We are especially grateful for the community’s support of the Gail Borden Public Library
District Foundation during 2020. Your generosity has helped us continue to support the Library in
providing innovative programs and services for people of all ages—newborns, elementary school
students, teens and adults during this extremely challenging time period.
During 2020, the Foundation provided additional outreach opportunities with the purchase of a new
Library vehicle and established a school year reading program to keep students reading as well as
helped to maintain programs such as Career Online High School. The Foundation’s commitment to
the community continues to support new ways to enrich lives. Thank you!
What is the Library Foundation?
The Gail Borden Public Library Foundation supports and celebrates the Library’s quest to enhance
Thank You
literacy in this community and to sustain a world-class library district. We support reading initiatives,
engaging exhibits that have changed lives, capital projects and more. The Foundation is a nonprofit
organization and donations are tax exempt. Projects that the Gail Borden Public Library Foundation
has supported continue to make a significant positive difference for everyone who uses our Library’s
extraordinary services and resources.

Bringing More Books
and Programs to the
Community
The addition of a Sprinter van is providing
the Library with more opportunities to bring
books and programming to those who
cannot visit in person. The 2014 model
purchased from a suburban library by the
Foundation in October was already outfitted
as a bookmobile with a wheelchair lift.
Smaller than the Library’s bookmobile, the
van has flexibility to visit community events
and venues of all sizes.
Library staff members have been able to use
the van to bring materials to even more
children who have no access to books
because of school library closures due to
COVID. Also, the van brings books,
storytimes and literacy activities to at-risk
preschool children along with resources in
English and Spanish for parents.
Reaching these children and helping them
prepare for school is important as we know
that more than half of preschoolers in our
community don’t have the literacy skills they
need for entering kindergarten. Some of the
van’s scheduled visits include the Boys &
Girls Club of Elgin, the Taylor Family YMCA
and several KinderCare facilities.
The van serves as a dedicated vehicle to
help staff provide programs such as Tales &
Travel, Memory Cafes and Home Delivery
Service. Staff members are able to deliver
services to senior care facilities, group
homes and other vulnerable members of our
community.
The flexibility of the van invites even more
opportunities for the future, such as
delivering technology. The possibilities to
serve our community are endless for 2021!

School Year
Reading Program
Establishing a virtual school year reading
program with prize incentives was another
program that the Foundation supported in 2020.
Last summer, the Library sent a survey to
parents for feedback on upcoming children’s
programs and found that half of parents would
like a school year reading program for their
children.
Providing incentives for children to read while
restricted to their homes will help parents ensure
that their children keep reading and maintain
their reading skills. The new reading program
has the same foundation as summer reading. An
app called Beanstack helps parents keep track of
their children’s reading progress and makes
reading fun with online badges and games to
enhance readers’ experience.
148,372 Minutes Read
(As of 11-9-20)
Top 12 Books Read
(As of 11-9-20)
Participants in the program will receive small
prizes for reading accomplishments throughout
the year and be entered for a grand prize
drawing. The library’s KidSpace department is
planning for hundreds of students to participate.
The school year reading program is just one
more way that the Foundation helps support
literacy in the community.
Name:
Month:
Start
School Year
Reading Program
How to Participate
1. Sign up or log in to Beanstack at
gailborden.beanstack.org.
2. For every 20 minutes you read,
color in one box and log it on Beanstack.
3. Read 460 minutes each month and enter your minutes
into Beanstack to unlock a Monthly Challenge Badge.
4. When you reach 3,600 minutes of reading, you earn an
additional ticket for a grand prize or a free book of
your choice.
Minutes
Minutes
Minutes
Minutes
Click on each to view it in the catalog.
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Congrats on reading 460 minutes!
Now that you smashed this month’s reading goal, sign into Beanstack,
log your minutes (you can enter it all 450 at once), and see if you have
unlocked any special reading badges or prizes.
https://gailborden.beanstack.com/reader365
Minutes
WWW.GAILBORDEN.INFO/FOUNDATION

The Foundation supports many other initiatives:
Summer Reading
Program
Encouraging students to maintain
reading skills over the summer.
Exhibits
Bringing world class
exhibits such as dinosaur
GIANTS and SPACE to the
community.
Board Members
Mike Lee
President
Libby Hoeft
Vice President
Bookmobile
Bringing books and programs to
children and adults who cannot
get to the library.
Career Online
High School
Helping adults earn a high
school diploma.
Paul Larson
Secretary
Jerry Turnquist
Treasurer
Giving Opportunities
To make a tax deductible donation to positively impact this community, please visit the
Foundation’s online Donate page: www.gailborden.info/foundation/donate
Or donations can be sent to the Gail Borden Public Library District Foundation at
270 N. Grove, Elgin, IL 60120.
Jo Ann Armenta
Director
Harry Blizzard
Director
Karen Fox
Director
Photo: Ursula Wilson of the EFS Foundation and Mike Lee, President
of the Gail Borden Public Library Foundation.
View
Complete
Donor
List
Amanda Garcia
Director
Larry Jones
Director
Thank You
Thank you to all who have directly made a donation to the Foundation and
everyone who donates or purchases from Gail's Sales, the used book room
located at the Main Library.
This year, the Foundation received donations that will make significant positive
impacts on our community. Thank you EFS Foundation, Montiegel Trust,
Comcast Internet Essentials, Taos Community Foundation, KCT and Got Robot.
We are extremely proud of the many names that are highlighted on our
Foundation Donor Wall that was unveiled last year in the Main Library
Entry Rotunda.
Susan N. Moylan
Director
Cherie Murphy
Director
Leo Nelson
Director
Karen Schock
Director
Mike Lee
Foundation President
WWW.GAILBORDEN.INFO/FOUNDATION
John Shales
Director
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