A large donation of children’s books was recently presented by the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe, represented here by Cyndi Allen-Weddell and Nick Flute, to the Moody County Resource Center, represented by Librarian Erica Rorvik, at right. FSST Grant Writer Robert Byrnes obtained the grant and the books with the idea that Rorvik and Flandreau School Librarian Lori Williams would disperse the books in the best possible manner. Board books, picture books, and juvenile fiction books were given and the reading age ranged from Pre-Kindergarten to Pre-Teen.
After categorizing the books, the two found that 111 books could be put into the local library system and the Colman Branch Library will also receive a copy of any of the duplicate titles for their patrons.

The remaining books will be distributed to children and some already have. Each child that attended the Crystal Theatre’s “The Little Mermaid” production could choose a book to take home if they wished.
“For the picture books and board books,” said Rorvik, “I will be reaching out to several entities to promote early literacy.” The hope is that the Public Health nurse can take them to families when on home visits, they can be given to the Wholeness Center for displaced families, and to the Banquet in Sioux Falls for families facing hard times.
“I want those families to have books in their homes, that they may not otherwise have, so that they can read to their children and create not only a love of reading, but instill those reading building blocks that are so fundamental to their learning,” she added. “It is never to early to start reading to your child!”
Williams will be sharing the juvenile titles with teachers for their classrooms, including at Pleasant Valley Colony, and then allow the students to take whatever they wish.