School Gets Gift of New Library

Laura Casas Frier used to volunteer during recess and lunch at the old cramped library at Balboa Gifted Magnet elementary school. She remembered how there was barely enough space for kids to sit and read.

But those days are over at the school, which unveiled a new library Friday morning.

“It’s going to help increase the reading potential for every child,” said Casas, of Granada Hills, whose 10-year-old daughter, Sarah, attends the school. “The most wonderful part is the amount of books.”

There are 8,000 books at the library, 700 of which are new. The construction, which cost $45,000 and took over two former classrooms, more than doubled the size of the old library.

The new library was built by the Wonder of Reading, a local nonprofit organization that provided $25,000 for the project and oversaw the monthlong construction, said Christopher S. Forman, president of the group’s board.

The organization refurbishes Los Angeles Unified elementary schools that receive inadequate funding for such improvements. In four years, the group has renovated 27 LAUSD elementary school libraries.

Balboa raised an additional $20,000 for the library, $10,000 of which bought new books, Forman said. Next week the library will receive eight new computers, said Ann Zeitlin, the school’s librarian.

On Friday, the visitors’ favorite part of the library was its amphitheater, designed so kids can sit on green-carpeted steps while teachers and parents read to them. The area is decorated with a quilt featuring the covers of famous children’s books.

The school’s 660 students, many of whom read above their grade levels, will especially appreciate the larger selection of books, Zeitlin said. She said children often ask for biographies and books about the solar system and space exploration.

“They can do more research,” Zeitlin said. “The kids are so excited to start using it.”