Cheri Elser, Kiwanis Club of Merrillville, Merrillville, IN

This is the 4th year that the 2 Merrillville Kiwanis Clubs have distributed the books to 3rd Grade students in NW Indiana. The Schools, Students, Teachers all love the books and are so excited to have the student’s name typed on a label in the book, so they know that this is truly their own book and they can take it home with them. Children from the first year we started the program are still using the dictionaries. The favorites are always the longest word, sign language, and the planets. If we have any books left over after the distribution, we donate them to the Boys & Girls Club and/or the Salvation Army After-School programs.