Eastern Ky. school gifted new library supplies, $50,000 donation

KNOTT COUNTY, Ky. (WYMT) - Teachers, faculty and staff at Hindman Elementary School filed into their library to check out new additions.

Dollar General partnered with Reading is Fundamental to help restore the library after historic flooding.

”I was locked out just like everyone else for the week,” said principal Brandi Sims. “It’s been exciting, the anticipation to be able to enter today to see what they did has been so exciting.”

The library was gifted two reading nooks and 2,000 brand new books.

”For us, what we find most important, is just making sure kids are reading something,” said Marya Kawmy with Reading is Fundamental. “If they are picking a book they are interested in, they are more likely to come back and read over and over again.”

Dollar General store employees volunteered their time to build book shelves, furniture and sort through books.

”When we saw the need here, we saw the disaster that happened, we said ‘let’s go surprise them, let’s go do something wonderful,’” said Denine Torr with Dollar General. “That’s how we ended up here.”

One surprise left principal Brandi Sims speechless.

“$50,000 will go so far in the rebuilding process,” said Sims. “We still need library furniture, some chairs for the students, some desks.”

Students get to take one book home. Dollar General also gave the school’s staff $25 gift cards as a thank you.

”The library means so much to the children,” she said. “I think to come back in here on Tuesday, to see these pieces coming together with these options of brand new books will mean so much to them.”

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