Book club wraps up

  • Published
  • By Jonathan Rejent
  • Nucleus Staff Writer
Kirtland Air Force Base --  After thousands of read books and weeks of educational activities, including a visit from zoo animals, a sword fighting presentation and a lesson on the history of written language, the Kirtland Air Force Base library's summer reading club, came to a close July 22.

"This year, more children than ever completed the eight-week summer reading club program and attended the weekly events," said Karen Keane, supervisory librarian. "We were fortunate to have a wide variety of wonderful presenters, all of whom volunteered their time."

A Midsummer Knight's Read, the title given to this summer's reading club here, had three age divisions --preschool through five; six through eight; and nine through 18.

The top three readers from each category were awarded Barnes and Noble gift certificates July 22 during the club's final activity at the library.

First place winners were, Aaron Perez, 5, who read 255 books, Faith Wieck, 7, who read 372 books, and Kathleen Wieck, 10, who read 360 books; second place winners were Ethan Perez, 3, Nathan Perez, 7, and Courtney Kalb, 16; third place winners were Marshall Frisinger, 3, Estevan Esquibel, 8, and Chloe Smith, 12.

Each particpant who read more than 100 books was also awarded prizes.

"The goal of the summer reading program was to promote literacy and encourage a love of reading," said Marla Shin, reference librarian. "In today's economy, it's more important than ever for families to emphasize education and lifelong learning. The Kirtland AFB Library offers a wide variety of free materials and resources for children and adults."