Chathams Library Celebrates Reading at Picnic

Chatham children and their parents gathered behind the Library of the Chathams yesterday to celebrate their completion of the 2010 Make a Splash summer reading program.

As the smell of hot dogs wafted over the large crowd, participants geared up for an afternoon of grilling, ice cream, and even a dance party.

Sponsored by the Chatham Kiwanis and with music provided by the Women's Club, the picnic was well under way by 3:45. Children waited in line to hand in their "tickets," which doubled as invitations to the party. In order to receive an invitation, the kids had to reach the reading goal of 40 books, a task which proved to be no problem for the 253 invitees.

Mineli Lechner, the mother of two Chatham readers, said, "I think it's a great thing. The kids enjoy it, and they even get competitive about it!" Of the reward system that accompanies the program, she marveled, "They will stay here for hours. They just want to read more books and get the points! It's amazing."

Her children, 7-year-old Amelia and three-and-a-half-year-old Carah, both enjoyed their summer reading. Amelia's favorite, though, was Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.

Some very ambitious kids even went for the goal of 100 books. Kyle Hollerith, a first grader, started the summer trying to read 40 books but quickly set his sights on the bigger goal.

His mom, Kathy Hollerith, recounted, "It was great this year. He got to 40 points, and then he saw that they have bulletin board up with prizes for people who get to a hundred points. He saw that and was like 'I'm going for it.' I thought it was great!"

Kyle read an impressive 112 books this summer, with his favorite being Dolphin Diving.

Some avid readers like Jordan Davidek couldn't decide on one favorite, and instead listed Light at Dawn, Dinosaurs Before Dark, Magic Tree House, and Mummies in the Morning as the best books of her summer.

The readers were divided into four teams. According to the final stats calculated by children's librarian Laura Weinbrom, the Stupendous Starfish read 1,831 books, the Awesome Otters read 1,928, the Outstanding Octopi read 1,953, and the Gnarly Narwhals read 2,285, for a grand total of 8,004 books read by 549 children.

Much of the success of the program was made possible by the 121 middle and high school volunteers, who donated their time listening to the book reports of the children and engaging them in conversation about their favorite parts and characters.

They donated a total of 1171 hours this summer, and their time and effort showed in the happy, accomplished faces of the kids celebrating at the picnic.

Kathy Hollerith agreed, "They do a great job!"

After the hot dogs, everyone was offered a dessert of ice cream, which was followed by a dance party where everyone could let loose and enjoy the recognition for meeting their end-of-summer goals.