Book Drive Looking for a fun volunteer project? Want to color the world of a child?

Conduct a Book Drive! The Outpatient Clinic and Specialty Center waiting rooms of Children’s Mercy’s Hospitals and Clinics are in need of gently used and new books. More than 250,000 children are seen in the outpatient clinics of Children’s Mercy annually. Reading is one of the primary activities patients participate in while waiting to see a doctor. For some children, having a Children’s Mercy volunteer read them a story may be a special event that does not occur at home. It is important that our clinic waiting rooms be well stocked with enjoyable books for families and patients to share. • • • • • •

Books can be new or gently used in GOOD condition. Books should be free from odors (smoke). Books should be printed after 1985 to avoid toxic prints. Please, no encyclopedias, other reference books or text books.

What you can do to help… Organize a book drive within your church, community service organization or group of friends. Encourage your children to “help a child” by organizing a book drive with their scout troop, day care group, or other group of friends.

You can be sure that your donation will bring joy to a child visiting one of Children’s Mercy’s clinics! Please contact Carrie Criss, Volunteer Coordinator, at [email protected] for additional information. Thanks so much for your willingness to help!

Thank you for sponsoring a book drive for Children’s Mercy Hospital and Clinics. This is a wonderful way to make a color the world of a child. This note should answer most of your questions and be all of the materials you need. The Mercy Bear poster should be placed where the most people will see it, such as near the collection bins, on the refrigerator door, bathroom doors or community bulletin boards. Be creative! Review Children’s Mercy Hospital’s “Safe Donation Guidelines” (attached) policy before you plan your drive. All items generated by a drive using the CMH logo must be donated directly to CMH. Keep your advertising fun and lighthearted in keeping with a “child friendly” theme. In your advertising, say your organization is doing the drive “on behalf of the patients and families at Children’s Mercy Hospital.” If the drive is to benefit a certain area of the hospital, mention it. i.e. “…a drive to benefit burn patients at Children’s Mercy Hospital.” Some lessons from successful book drives are below: 1. Detailed information up front – who this benefits, when the drive is taking place, and how you can help. 2. Alternatives – we have a better response when there are options, i.e. cash. Those people who don’t have books and don’t have time to shop can donate outright. That money can then be spent on new books. 3. Make it easy to give – the bins should be easily accessible, preferably something that people see every day. They can serve as a reminder, and make it easy to donate. Put up posters near the bins. 4. Let the drive go the proper amount of time – usually 1-2 weeks. Any less and people don’t have time to get things together, any more and they procrastinate and then forget. 5. Reminders – this is really important. Whether it’s emails (Monday through Thursday worked best, since people forget over the weekend), posters, or voicemails, it helps. People forget these things when they go home, but the more they have heard about a drive, the more likely they are to remember to bring something in. 6. Incentives – if you have a competitive group, then you can split into teams and have a contest to see who can have the most donated. This works well if you have a group that can be naturally split (departments, classrooms, etc.) Handling Questions: It helps to provide ideas for sources of the books and to handle questions up front. Such as: “I don’t have children or any children’s books. What can I do?” 1. You can be very successful by taking a poster and starting a book drive at your business group, club or in your Sunday school.

2. Do you have sisters or brothers or friends that might have children’s books? Are any of their children in a scout troop, on a sports team or other organization that is looking for a project? It’s an easy project that makes a difference! “I can’t get any children’s books, is there anything else I can do? I would like to help out.” 1. Absolutely! Consider a cash contribution to Children’s Mercy Hospital. Note on your check that you want the money to go towards the purchase of children’s books. Sample Email: Email reminders are the most effective way to reach the most people several times during the drive. A sample is below. Just tailor it to your group or organization. Don’t forget to bring in your new or gently used books for the Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics book drive. There is only one week left! Tubs are located near the main entrance or in your department. More than 250,000 children are seen in the outpatient clinics of Children’s Mercy annually. Reading is one of the primary activities patients participate in while waiting to see a doctor. For some children, having a Children’s Mercy volunteer read them a story may be a special event that does not occur at home. It is important that our clinic waiting rooms be well stocked with enjoyable books for families and patients to share. • Books can be new or gently used in GOOD condition. • Books should be free from odors (smoke). • Books should be printed after 1985 to avoid toxic prints. • Please, no encyclopedias, other reference books or text books. Thanks for your tremendous support of this wonderful cause. Saying Thanks: A representative of the Advocacy Team will usually be available to visit and thank your organization. Be certain to turn in the form with the information on the group so Volunteer Services can mail them a thank you note. A note from you as sponsor to the key supporters or the entire organization will be much appreciated. Posting it where it can be seen by the most people or by sending an email are easy ways to accomplish this key part of the drive. It also goes a long way towards gathering support for the book drive next year! If you have questions, just email Jim at [email protected]. He will get back to you as soon as he can with an answer. Thanks again for all your efforts on behalf of Children’s Mercy.

Safe Donation Guidelines ~ Please help us keep our patients and families safe ~ •

All donations must be NEW and free of odors; i.e. smoke.

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All play materials must be sturdy and safe.

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We cannot accept items that contain latex, have been recalled, violent or religious in nature and could be edible (candy, gel-filled items).

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All liquid donations (i.e. bubbles, paints, etc.) must bear the words “non-toxic on the label.

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All stuffed animal donations must be new with tags still attached to each never having been stored or displayed for any length of time.

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All clothing donations must be new and gender neutral with tags still in place.

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New and gently used books (no older than 1985) must be in good shape. Textbooks, encyclopedias, dictionaries and used activity books are discouraged.

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Magazines must be no more than one-year old and in good shape with mailing labels cut off

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All hand sewn and crafted material should be taken from the “Art of Giving” brochure and arranged through Volunteer Services prior to donation date.

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Miscellaneous donations (items not mentioned in the “Art of Giving” brochure) will be accepted by Volunteer Services only if a requesting department has given approval. i.e. hearing aides.

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To respect the privacy and current situations of our patients and their families, please refrain from including written messages with your donation.

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In kind donations will be distributed under the direction of the Volunteer Services and Child Life departments.

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To protect the health and safety and maintain confidentiality of patients and families, donors are not permitted to distribute items.

For Main Campus deliveries, please bring items to: Volunteer Services Office, 2401 Gillham Rd, Kansas City, MO Hours for Main Campus: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday-Thursday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Fridays Call 816-234-3496 in advance to arrange weekend or after-hours delivery. For Children’s Mercy South, 5808 W. 110th Street, Overland Park, KS Deliveries may be made anytime because the Security Department will accept them or mail special arrangements cy contacting 913-696-8033. Thank you for coloring the world with books for the patients and families of Children’s Mercy Hospitals and Clinics!

In-Kind Donation Form You will be asked to fill one of these forms out when you deliver your donations, or feel free to fill it out ahead of time by downloading it. DUE TO INFECTION CONTROL GUIDELINES ONLY NEW ITEMS ARE ACCEPTED (WITH THE EXCEPTION OF GENTLY USED BOOKS). Date Received: ______________________ Donor Name: (Individual or Group Name) Contact Person: Address: City, State Phone: E-mail:

Zip Code

Description of Donation: (please check all that apply) ______ Toys (1) _____ Books (4) ______DVDs ______ Art Supplies (2) ______ Blankets/Quilts (5) ______Medical Play Dolls ______ Stuffed Animals (3) ______ Clothes Other (6) Additional Comments:

Gained information about donating through (please check one) Art of Giving Brochure Phone call to Volunteer Services CHM website Meditech Bulletin Board Other Estimated Value: $_____________________________________

For Office Use Only Donation accepted By:

Intended Use: Patients

Internal Hospital Use

Direct Distribution to

Comments:

First copy to: Volunteer Services

Second copy to: Accounting