Cassidy’s birthday book drive to support Local Little Libraries

Peyton Belyeu checks out the books in the ShineOnCass Lending Library, where free books are available to kids attending summer and after-school care programs at Alfond Youth and Community Center, in Waterville. Photo in background is Cassidy Charette. (photo courtesy of Monica Charette)

by Monica Charette

ShineOnCass Foundation invites the community to join “Cassidy’s Birthday Book Drive” to help shine a light on childhood literacy and inspire reading. The ShineOnCass Foundation, named and created in memory of Cassidy Charette, will collect children’s books during the month of August to help fill the shelves of local Little Free Libraries. Volunteers will deliver donated books on what would be Cassidy’s 27 birthday on August 31.

A registered Little Free Library, located at 93 Water Street, in Waterville, is among more than a dozen “take a book, share a book” free libraries located throughout central Maine. ShineOnCass Foundation is collecting books for Little Free Libraries during the month of August and will distribute donations on Cassidy Charette’s birthday, August 31. For a list of local Little Free Libraries, visit shineoncass.org. (photo courtesy of Monica Charette)

A Little Free Library is a “take a book, share a book” free book exchange in communities nationally and internationally. Thousands of Little Free Libraries, owned and supported by volunteer stewards, are located in communities in over 120 countries. More than a dozen Little Free Libraries are located in central Maine, including a ShineOnCass Lending Library for children at the Alfond Youth and Community Center in Waterville. A list of local Little Free Library locations can be found on the ShineOnCass website, shineoncass.org.

“Our mission is to make books accessible for kids, expand their knowledge, and inspire future readers,” says Monica Charette, Cassidy’s mother and executive director of the ShineOnCass Foundation. Cassidy, a 17-year-old Oakland resident who died in a hayride accident in 2014, was an avid reader, youth mentor, and a lifelong community volunteer.

“We believe expanding literacy access to local families is a meaningful way to celebrate the day Cassidy was born, by giving back and sharing her love for reading with kids.”

New and gently used books for children and young adults can be donated all month at Camden National Bank, at 51 Main Street, in Oakland, or at 258 Kennedy Memorial Drive, in Waterville. Books will be distributed to Little Free Libraries on Cassidy’s birthday on August 31.

For more information about Cassidy’s Birthday Book Drive or the ShineOnCass Foundation, visit shineoncass.org.