Ten Thousand Villages Collaboration in Pennsylvania and 

Five Library Openings in Romania

The literacy nonprofit organization, Judith’s Reading Room, aims to raise public awareness of the extraordinary value of the written word by celebrating UNESCO’s International Literacy Day 2014 both here and abroad.  

In eastern Pennsylvania, Ten Thousand Villages, one of the world’s oldest fair trade retailers, selected Judith’s Reading Room as its 2014 partner on this occasion.  “Literacy is a key component to earning a fair wage and to the mission of Ten Thousand Villages,” said Tina Huyler, store manager Lehigh Valley Mall.  “We are proud to collaborate with Judith’s Reading Room in their effort to spread literacy world wide,” she added. 

A total of six (6) Ten Thousand Village locations are partnering with Judith’s Reading Room:  Ardmore, Ephrata, Exton, Lancaster, Lehigh Valley Mall and Media.  At the Lehigh Valley Mall and Media locations, in addition to collecting children’s books to donate to the organization, 15% of each purchase made on September 7th will be donated to Judith’s Reading Room to help cover the expense of shipping books to Romania.

Five Judith’s Reading Room Libraries Will Open in Romania on September 8th

Judith’s Reading Room announces the dedication of five libraries in Resita City, Romania in celebration of International Literacy Day.  Working in conjunction with a municipal librarian, Dominique Zara, the organization aims to ship a total of 6,000 books that will serve 70,000 inhabitants.  “We understand that the role of a library is not only to provide books or IT services, but to help the community,” said Zara.  She continued, “we want to teach the Roma children to read and talk in English in order to be able to handle life and to find a job anywhere in the world.”  

Dominique Zara’s goal was to “do something big for her town and her community,” according to Cathy Leiber, president, Judith’s Reading Room.  The libraries in Resita City held just 200 children’s books in English until the recent donation by Judith’s Reading Room.  “We are proud to bring outstanding children’s literature in English to this community because we firmly believe in the necessity to promote literate societies both here and abroad,” said Leiber.

International Literacy Day was founded by UNESCO in 1965.  Its aim is to highlight the importance of literacy to individuals, community and societies.

Judith’s Reading Room, founded in 2010, promotes “Freedom Through Literacy” and as of this date has opened 83 libraries in 13 countries outside the United States including Afghanistan, India, Indonesia, Nigeria, Albania, Costa Rica, Cambodia, Japan, Namibia, Bhutan, China, the Philippines and Romania.  The organization has shipped nearly 92,000 books valued at $928,800 around the world and to local hospitals, Philadelphia Boys & Girls Clubs, to deployed troops and to VA hospitals in three states.