Books abound at Helen Haller

Sequim Gazette staff

The Rotary Club of Sequim, also known as Noon Rotary, recently invested $1,000 in library books for Helen Haller Elementary School, 350 W. Fir St., Sequim. Club members recently launched a new program called Raise a Reader at the school to promote literacy.

"We felt this money could really make a difference in the school," Sara Maloney, Rotary president, said.

The goal is to provide at least 100 new books for the library and 100 volunteer hours by the end of the school year.

School librarian Marsha Omdal said most of the 55 books she purchased are hardbound and will hold up well over time. The school's annual budget is about $3,000 a year for new books. Omdal supplements that with funds raised at the Scholastic Book Fair and with donations.

"We wouldn't have been able to get these books without (Rotary's) help," Omdal said.

Rotary also donates a dictionary to every fourth-grader districtwide. This January, Rotary begins a new program in Sequim Middle School called Interact Club, a service group for middle school students. Sunrise Rotary sponsors the

Sequim High School Interact Club. Projects are determined by students.

For more information, visit www.sequimnoonrotary.org.

Contact Helen Haller Elementary at 582-3200.