Spokane, WA | March 25, 2025 – The Library Foundation of Spokane County is again raising funds during the annual Library Giving Day campaign to give books to every kid and teen who registers for Spokane County Library District’s (SCLD) Summer Reading program. This year’s Library Giving Day is Tuesday, April 1, with donations accepted throughout the entire month of April. This is the second year the Library Foundation has supported Summer Reading with a goal of raising $5,000.

For 2025, the giveaway is expanding to include preschool readers so that all youth ages 0–17 registering for Summer Reading will receive a book. The entirety of donations to Library Giving Day go directly to covering the costs of providing these books.

Offering a book at the beginning of the summer in 2024 increased registration, particularly among school-aged children. It also incentivized families with kids to visit the library at the beginning of summer to check out additional books and encouraged continued reading throughout the season.

Last year, over 1,500 children registered for Summer Reading. With this number, SCLD saw a 33% increase in total registration and a 59% increase in school-aged participants (ages 5–17) over the previous year. The largest group of youth participants were in grades 2, 3 and 4, which are the most critical grades for learning to read.

The Summer Reading program at SCLD encourages kids to maintain or improve their reading skills during summer, helping to ensure that they are ready to learn in the fall and not working to regain forgotten skills when they return to school.

Donations to Library Giving Day, supporting SCLD’s Summer Reading Program in 2025, can be made at supportscld.org/library-giving-day.

Library Giving Day is an annual fundraising event with the goal of encouraging people who depend on and enjoy public libraries to donate to their local library system. And in turn, that support goes toward the incredible programs, services, and materials provided by local libraries all over the country. For additional information about the national Library Giving Day program, visit LibraryGivingDay.org.

Spokane County Library District provides resources, experiences, and places that empower people to learn, explore, and succeed. The District operates 10 libraries throughout Spokane County, including Airway Heights, Argonne, Cheney, Deer Park, Fairfield, Medical Lake, Moran Prairie, North Spokane, Otis Orchards, Spokane Valley, and the mobile library LINC. For more information, visit scld.org or call 509.893.8200.

The Library Foundation of Spokane County seeks and stewards charitable donations to support the services of SCLD. For more information about the Foundation, visit supportscld.org.