John and Anne-Marie Monfredo, founders of the Worcester: The City that Reads Committee, recently kicked off their fifth annual book drive.
They hope to gather more than 25,000 new or gently used books for children in preschool through Grade 8. The books are distributed to schools, preschools and local organizations in June. Collection sites will gather books between now and May 15 and are spread throughout the city and include banks, bookstores, the Worcester Public Library, supermarkets, restaurants, the Senior Center on Vernon Street, the DCU Center, the Jewish Community Center on Salisbury Street, the Greendale YMCA and a variety of other businesses.
Individual public and private schools, colleges, organizations, and businesses are holding individual drives to benefit the effort, and Scholastic Books has already donated more than 1,500 books to get the drive started. For more information, call the Monfredos at (508) 853-3444.
