Luzerne County Correctional Facility Librarian Tom Patton watched as volunteers unloaded box after box of donated books for his shelves.
“I’m going to be very busy sorting all of these out,” he said.
The volunteers unloading more than 3,000 donated books were members of New Books on the Block, a group from this year’s Leadership Northeast program.
“We did have a goal of 2,000 in mind…we certainly weren’t sure we would be able to hit that,” said group member Carrie Owens. “We went well above that. We exceeded our expectations and we’re thrilled.”
For the past couple of months, members of New Books on the Block have collected donations, advertised the book drive and checked the donation boxes they set up throughout the county.
The idea for the project came from Linda Loop, CEO of Dress for Success of Luzerne County. During her Saturdays for Success programs at the correctional facility, Loop said the incarcerated women she works with often request more books.
“We’ve received letters from the inmates saying how powerful the books were and what a difference it made in their time here,” Loop said. “We know statistically that literacy will help reduce recidivism, and that’s what this was about.”
Patton said the prison’s library had been in need of help. He said he’s often given a book to an inmate only for the book to have the first 40 pages missing.
“The books we have are so old…some of them were probably 15 years going around the cells,” he said. “These are in mint condition…they’re all up to date authors.”
As the members of New Books on the Block unloaded box after box of books, authors like Steven King, Dean Koontz and James Patterson appeared frequently, along with complete, recent series like Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Outlander.
Luzerne County Correctional Facility Warden James Wilbur said the prison library has always relied on donations and very rarely purchases new books. He expected a significant amount of books from the program, but did not expect the volume that arrived at the prison on Thursday morning.
“This gives inmates that are here an opportunity to fill their time in what I feel is a productive manner,” he said.
The group also collected writing utensils, book carts, file folders and other supplies to refresh the library.
Loop shared one letter that inspired the project - it came from a former inmate who wrote to her about the books she had read while incarcerated.
Dress for Success had donated those books, and the ones she read inspired her to work hard at reuniting with her family.
“I understand the importance of what a good book can do, it can take you to a different place,” Loop said. “When you’re in a position where you can’t move around, that book is your lifeline.”
