Winter 2013
INSIDE: Get Involved; J. Thompson Brown Awards; A Taste for Art of Southern Delaware; Leslie’s Letter...and more!
READesign at Warner Elementary Capital One in partnership with The Heart of America Foundation joined together to provide a newly designed library to Warner Elementary in Wilmington, Delaware, part of our Community Schools initiative.
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arner Elementary School in Wilmington had a library that served its purpose, providing a place for learning and story time. However, the facility itself paled in comparison to the eager students who visited daily and to Mrs. Hopson, the school’s beloved librarian. Those who loved the library learned to look past peeling paint and worn carpet. As tricky as it might have been, the students found a way to reach books on shelves that towered over their heads, and they dangled happy little feet from adult-sized chairs. But the library’s book collection was in need of updates to stay current. Plus, it was time for an infusion of kid-friendly technology to keep hungry, young minds engaged. Warner Elementary, one of our community schools in the Red Clay District, was delighted when we connected them to Capital One, one of our funding partners. Capital One immediately brought in The Heart of America Foundation, an initiative that redesigns school libraries in need across the country. After a joint visit to Warner, they determined that the school would be a good fit for their READesign program given the library’s needs and the positive impact the project would have on students and members of the community. “Warner stands out because the library is not just the heart of the school, but also the heart of the community. When we met with the students and staff of Warner Elementary, we knew we were going to have the greatest impact on the most people by helping Warner,”
stated Leslie Kosek, Senior Manager of Community Affairs at Capital One. Once the decision was made to update the Warner library, Capital One and The Heart of America Foundation got right to work, partnering closely with CFF’s Warner Site Coordinator Mari Horsey, who helped manage day-to-day logistics at the site. The makeover was extensive. The READesign team painted the walls a more cheerful mix of greens, purples and oranges. They brought in recycled carpeting tiles from a Capital One location to freshen up the floor. New tables and chairs in colors to match the walls and in sizes to match the age of the students were brought in. The library was outfitted with a new reading area featuring beanbag-like poufs for the children to sit on for story time, a new flat-screen TV monitor, and a few dozen iPads loaded with educational apps. New bookshelves made it much easier for students to reach every shelf. Perhaps most exciting, those shelves were stocked with over 800 additional books. And it didn’t stop there. Each of Warner’s 596 students was given five books to take home as the start of their own personal library. (In addition to the READesign at Warner, Capital One made a generous donation of reference volumes and other books to Shortlidge Academy.) The best part of the READesign was seeing the student’s faces when they entered the Warner library for the first time after its makeover. Excited children participated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony this October which featured remarks from Delaware’s First Lady, Carla Markell, U. S. Representative John Carney, as well as Capital One’s Head of Direct Banking Jim Kelly. The children had been told that a library make-over was coming, but they didn’t know what to expect. Some joyfully gasped and covered their mouths with excitement when they entered the room, while others stood quietly, wide-eyed, taking in the myriad of changes. Nina, a Warner student, summed up the feelings in the room, exclaiming in a quiet voice, “This library makes my heart shine!” LEFT: Delaware’s First Lady, Carla Markell, makes remarks at Warner Library’s ribbon cutting ceremony. RIGHT: Warner’s new library is revealed! For more photos visit cffde.org.