Schools

Timber Creek Honor Society Collects Books for African Library

Students collected more than 3,000 books to support a public library in war-torn Rwanda.

Timber Creek Regional High School's National Honor Society has collected more than 3,000 books to support a public library in Africa.

The Gahini Library Project aims to support one of Rwanda's first public libraries. It was initiated after the Rwandan government officially made English the war-torn, impoverished nation's secondary language, creating an immediate need for English-language books.

The local drive was spearheaded by Timber Creek National Honor Society officers Frank Brancati, Genesis Estrada, Brian Goldspiel and Michael Strauch and members Greg Adoff and Zachary Weintraut, according to advisor Joe Sokolic.

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National Honor Society members placed book drops at various points in the Erial school and asked students and staff members to bring in gently used books to support the effort. The students also collected books from Camden County Library System and Camden County College's library and English as a Second Language Department.

A book that may cost the average American an hour's wages would cost the average Rwandan about a month's wages, Sokolic noted. The Gahini Library Project will lead to library shelves being stocked with English-language books, helping Rwandans learn their new language.

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The National Honor Society wished to thank maintenance supervisor Mark McMaster for delivering the books to the depot in Pitman.


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