Smiles were prevalent Sunday as dozens of sturdy, well-built oak bookcases left the Wright City West Elementary School gymnasium with children tagging behind with a bag full of books. The Warren County Bookcase Project’s first awards ceremony was deemed a success by organizers as 66 bookcases were distributed to preschool-age children. The all-volunteer initiative was formed to improve childhood literacy by providing bookcases and books for local 4-year-old children in low-income families. Over 1,600 books were distributed at the event. Each child received 24 age-appropriate books for their personalized bookcase that included a gold plate with their name. Sponsors of the project, “book club members,” personalized the bookcases by signing the back of them and had an opportunity to meet the recipient. The sponsors included local educators and other community members with an interest in literacy development The sponsors ranged from an 8-year-old second-grader to a retired teacher over 80 years old. In between, sponsors included current and retired educators, local businesses and elected officials. Since forming late last year, bookcase project committee members identified a sponsor for all 66 bookcases and collected somewhere between 4,000 to 5,000 books during a book drive organized by a local retired teachers group. The extra books will then be distributed when the bookcase project begins the second year of its literacy campaign. Rich Lagemann, a former Wright City R-II School District administrator, helped spearhead the effort to form the local bookcase project committee after reading about a similar organization. He said he was overwhelmed with the community’s support. “It was neat to see everything come together,” he said. “The kids get something out of it and the people who sponsor get something out of it. It’s a win-win. “The response from the community, from the books that were collected to the sponsors, it reaffirms there are all kinds of good people out there.” One sponsor, Wright City West Elementary second-grade teacher Don King, purchased the wood and other supplies needed for constructing six bookcases. Every day he witnesses how reading at a young age pays off in the classroom. “It make a big difference,” King said. “These kids are our future. It’s important to step up and make a difference.” The children who received the bookcases are participants in Youth in Need’s head start program. Jane Bennett, family and community partner specialist for the nonprofit agency, was glad Youth in Need was able to contribute to the literacy initiative. Bennett said many of the families the agency serves don’t have the financial means to purchase books. The bookcase project can fill that void, she said. “They want the best for their kids,” Bennett said about the children’s parents. “(Reading) is a great opportunity to connect with them.” During Sunday’s ceremony, the parents and children receiving a bookcase each took an oath making a commitment to read in their home. This was the start, Lagemann hopes, for many more ceremonies to be held. “We plan on this being an annual activity,” he said.