Our Summer Success Story celebrates the expansion of Summer Books this year.

We have increased the number of locations and van-routes we visit each week and now are getting books into the hands of children from Brunswick to Waldoboro and Jefferson! Our partnerships with Art Van and Healthy Lincoln County summer lunch program have continued. Local children made art projects, received nutritious meals, and then chose their own free books to take home and enjoy. The combined effort has increased the awareness of Midcoast Literacy and helped local children to have a summer of good nutrition and reading materials that they choose and keep for themselves. This summer, we’ve also joined with the Bath Y Veggie Van to deliver books to more local stops in the Bath-Brunswick area than ever before, reaching kids in their neighborhoods. The feedback from the kids and parents has been overwhelmingly positive. “We can keep our books?” and “Thank you for finding this for me” are regular comments heard. All these Summer Books stops would not have been possible without our first-ever summer intern, Kyle Ricker. A rising senior at the University of Maine, Orono, and resident of Wiscasset, Kyle has been busy distributing books in Wiscasset, Boothbay Harbor, Edgecomb, and Bath. He quickly developed a knack for helping children find books that were just right for their interests and reading levels. “Kyle is awesome, btw,” shared one parent. “He brings great books,” added a pre-teen boy. "Interning with Midcoast Literacy has been an incredibly rewarding experience,” said Kyle. “From reading to young children to connecting youth with books, I’ve had an amazing time gaining invaluable skills while contributing to a mission that fosters a love of literacy in our community." Congratulations to Kyle and Robin for all their hard work bringing books to new corners of the midcoast this summer, and keep following us for more success stories from our programs this fall.