Virginia Republican Women’s Club book drive aims for 1,000 age-appropriate books for Loudoun County schools

The Loudon County, Virginia Republican Women’s Club plans to present more than 1,000 books to their local public school board in September, as part of an initiative to stock classroom libraries with age-appropriate materials. 

The club launched a book drive in mid-July, with the goal of collecting 1,000 books to distribute among K-12 classrooms in the district. The books, a mix of classic children’s literature and newer fiction, will be categorized and presented at the Sept. 13 meeting of the Loudon County School Board. 

“We’re calling the book drive the ‘This, Not That, Return to Literacy’,” Erin Roselle-Poe, president of the Republican Women’s Club, told The Lion. “Our goal is to do something positive instead of the negative that has surrounded our schools. Supporting teachers and classroom libraries with all types of literary genres is a great way to make a difference.” 

 Club members describe the drive as a community effort. They created a wish list on Amazon, and asked families to donate gently used books. The club collected more than 300 books in two weeks, and members feel confident they’ll surpass their goal.  

 Poe says the community response has been overwhelmingly positive, with book donors believing that stocking classroom libraries with age-appropriate children’s literature is a way to “positively push back” against the controversial, sometimes explicit books that are cropping up in schools. 

 “When the book drive idea was presented at our meeting, there was applause,” said Poe. “We have quite a few teachers [as] part of our club, and they are really excited about this. Feedback has been extremely positive, and we have had a tremendous response via social media and Amazon orders.” 

Poe says Loudon County schools have been embroiled in controversy over the district’s equity initiatives. This is one way her club wants to help teachers and students have access to books that appeal to all children, and which aren’t solely focused on issues of sexuality and race. 

“We really want to give children an opportunity to use their imaginations and help them become free thinkers,” Poe said. “It’s amazing when you go back through some of the books – classics for children – and how they get you thinking about things.”  

Poe’s goal is to support teachers in all grade levels throughout the district. 

“We are hoping to help teachers who have to spend their own money finding books at yard sales,” she said. “This allows us to give teachers a boatload of books and fulfill the students’ reading requirements.  

 “The classroom libraries are important. Kids pull from those libraries, between tests and assignments, so this opens the pathway to have a variety of books. It’s a way to positively push back against what they are constantly throwing at our kids.”