Lindsy Donnelly, assistant athletic trainer, recently joined a group of volunteers preparing for the annual event known as The Reading Bonanza in the Park. The event was a free literacy expo open to the public and held at a local park in East Palo Alto on May 18th, 2015. It consisted of reading activities, games and entertainment hosted by volunteers and community organizations. Over 6,000+ free books were given to all the 385 registered youth, with over 900 people in attendance. There were free raffle prizes, along with activity tables and booths hosting on-going activities throughout the day as well as scheduled activities such as poetry workshops, on-stage entertainment, and a spelling bee. The purpose of the event was to showcase the diversity of books and promote the joy of reading. Families were exposed to community resources, programs and various aspects of reading for entertainment, education and empowerment.

Donnelly states, “Through the planning and participation in the event, I quickly found out how much of a passion each of the individuals had for the community of East Palo Alto. It was an incredible event that was both fulfilling for the community and for myself. I would encourage anyone in the Stanford community to get involved with this event in 2016!”

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