Providing the tools

Christine Carrillo

Elementary school students at three Costa Mesa schools will certainly

stay on top of the latest Stuart Little adventure or Curious George

predicament thanks to the book-buying efforts of the Newport-Mesa

community.

Over the last four years, the “Fountain for Youth” program,

sponsored by three Newport Beach Rotary Clubs and the Daily Pilot,

has put more than 17,000 books into the hands of students at

Whittier, Pomona and Wilson elementary schools, said Roger McGonegal,

president of the Rotary Club of Newport-Balboa.

This year, the three schools received about 2,000 books and, over

the past week, each of the schools held receptions to thank the

donors for their efforts.

“What we’re seeing is that kids are just reading all the time,”

said Candy Sperling, principal at Wilson. “These kids are reading ...

and this gives them another opportunity for reading, and even reading

at accelerated levels.”

The program is part of the “Reading by 9” campaign, sponsored by

the Los Angeles Times, which focuses on improving students’ literacy

skills at a young age.

For the Rotarians, volunteers and donors who participated in the

program, the goal is to help students thrive in the classroom.

“The classrooms are much more dynamic than when I went to school

and there’s quite a buzz going on,” said Bruce Garlich, a Costa Mesa

planning commissioner and three-year volunteer at Wilson. “It’s such

a pleasure to see these kids get excited about reading. This program

is wonderful because it’s its own reward.”

For some of the people involved in this program, seeing the

appreciative response from the children it aims to help reinforces

the importance of their efforts.

Those efforts have not gone unnoticed by the students they’re

aimed at.

“I’m very grateful they’re donating some books for us. That’s very

nice of them,” said 11-year-old Xochilt Aragon, student council

president at Wilson. “Their future relies on us, and they’re helping

us to have a better future and getting us to be better at reading and

they’re setting goals for us.”