ISLAND BOOKS

Heidi Hughey is back with her suitcase full of books for the school children of Anguilla. Several years ago with the tenacity of Teacher Art Egel and the support of Bob Green, Island Books was born. It is a simple project where visitors to the island are asked to bring a new or gently used children’s book. These books are distributed equally among the six primary schools on the island. With the passing of Teacher Art and his unfailing enthusiasm, the project slowed down. Recently Heidi returned and with the support of Teacher Paula Edwards of the Alwyn Allison Primary school, Island Books was rejuvenated. The Department of Education supports the project and hopes that the word will spread. One way to spread the word is for Hotels and restaurants to communicate the information to all their guests. Straw Hat Restaurant, Smokey’s at the Cove and Cuisinart Resort and Sheriva Estates have been supportive of the project by either linking to the project or providing a drop off point for the books. Hopefully more businesses will do the same.
This year is different for Heidi. Instead of just dropping off the books, she is staying several weeks and teaching at the Alwyn Allison. She is a reading teacher in Boston and has January off. So with some encouragement from her friends here, she decided teaching in Anguilla would be a wonderful opportunity. After a few days, she commented that she is already having an awesome time. The kids, besides being adorable, are wonderful to work with she says. She only has a few more days to memorize the student’s names before they test her. Beautiful names such as Zomani, Treshanna, Tyriek, Deannique, Myracle. Richie has been the easiest to learn!
Check out the web site www.islandbooks.ai and become a fan on Facebook at Island Books Anguilla.