This month marks the second year of the Boston Public Library’s Out-of-school Time programming. This series of programs provides youth of all ages with something to do after school. Whether a third-grader seeking guidance from a teen Homework Help mentor, or a high-schooler looking for an activity to fuel their creative side, the BPL has something to offer every child. Monthly themes, such as math, science, and the arts give young patrons with a wide variety of programming to choose from.

Beyond homework help and engaging programs, the BPL offers vital spaces for teens and children to learn, play, and grow. As the Central Library and all the neighborhood branches swell with children back in school, please consider making a gift to help spark a love of learning.

Here’s how your gift could help:

•  $25 purchases one book for the children’s or teen collection
• $50 purchases craft supplies for arts programming at one location
• $100 purchases an interactive drawing pad to teach children how to create digital art
• $250 purchases a tablet or e-book reader for use by children and teens
• $500 purchases an iPad with learning apps
• $1,000 supports a collection of summer reading books at one location
• $1,500 supports a year of early literacy programming at one location
• $5,000 supports a collection of e-books for children and teens
• $7,500 supports a year of Out-of-school Time programming at one branch location

Over 3 million visitors come to the Boston Public Library a year, for so many different reasons—to do research, attend a lecture, take a class, see an exhibition, borrow a DVD or use the
Internet. But for most, we suspect the main reason they visit the library is a simple one: they just love to read.

For so many of us, that love of reading began early on, in childhood, with our mother or other loved one reading our favorite books to us aloud.

This Mother’s Day, we’d like to invite you to give back to that special person who gave you the gift of reading, by making a gift in her honor to the Boston Public Library. With your gift of $25 of more, we will dedicate a book in our collection to your mother, grandmother, or any special person in your life. A bookplate inscribed with your loved one’s name will be placed inside the front cover, and we will also send a personalized card to inform your honoree of your thoughtful gift.

So this Mother’s Day, honor your mother by helping us share the magic of reading with a new generation.

This year, we introduced our newly developed BPLF Partners Program, a program to say “thank you” to our supporters, and “welcome” to those who’d like to get more involved with the Boston Public Library Foundation.

The Partners Program offers exclusive benefits at every giving level, benefits like discounts to the BPL’s restaurants and retail store, reserved seating at lectures and author talk, and behind-the-scenes tours of the distinctive BPL collections. See more about the benefits here, and sign on to be a member by giving at whatever level you prefer.

Of course, we know that the most important benefit of partnering with the BPLF is knowing that you are supporting the Boston Public Library and all the critical services it offers throughout our city.

Last year alone, the Boston Public Library:

• hosted more than 10,000 public programs, over 5,000 of which were for children
• lent out more than 3.8 million books and audiovisual materials
• received more than 7.8 million visits to its web site
• helped more than 37,000 Boston residents sign up for library cards
• hosted more than 800,000 free computer sessions
• welcomed more than 3.4 million visitors

Imagine what more we could do, through your partnership, and the partnership of hundreds of people like you. Think big for Boston. Become a BPLF Partner today.

Christmas Lights on Snowy Tree by Leslie Jones

This holiday season, we’re offering a special opportunity to give your loved ones a gift that will last for a lifetime. Throughout the month of December, any gift you make online to the Boston Public Library Foundation will be recognized with a book dedicated in honor or memory of the recipient of your choice. Simply make a gift, and let us know who you are honoring, and we will place a custom bookplate with their name in one of our new books for the library’s collection. We will also send them a card on your behalf, notifying them of your gift. Give today!

Want to give your friends and family something a little more tangible? Visit our print shop, where you can purchase reproduction prints of amazing items from the BPL’s collection. Or come see us at the library, where we will be selling BPL merchandise to benefit the library during the holiday season (Psst – you can find us all year round at the Map Cafe).

Wishing you and yours a safe and happy holiday season, from all of us here at the BPLF.

A big thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s gala event, Celebrating Boston Sports Temples. It was an amazing night, with such distinguished guests as Jerry Remy and our Master of Ceremonies, Bill Littlefield of NPR and WBUR’s Only A Game. In total, we raised over $600,000 for the library, outstripping both last year’s total and this year’s goal. Thank you for helping us make this event a success. And particular thank you to our generous sponsors, listed below:

Lead Sponsor

Co-Lead Sponsor

Room Sponsors

Bates Circle Sponsors

McKim Circle Sponsors

Johnson Circle Sponsors

Patrons

Contributors

 “Without the library, I certainly wouldn’t be where I am today.” -Dennis Lehane, author and Trustee of the Boston Public Library

This week marked the first week of the BPL’s new and enhanced Out-of-school Time programming. Taking the input we received from the community as part of the Compass Plan, the library will now be offering enrichment opportunities that explore monthly themes such as writing, math, science, robotics and the arts – in addition to the homework help we’ve always provided.

This is simply the latest example in a long history of youth service. Since the day we opened the doors to the first ever library space devoted specifically to children in 1895, the BPL has been a pioneer in youth services. We are dedicated to making the library a place where every child and teen can thrive, by offering innovative programs like our new Out-of-school Time, Reading Readiness, Summer Reading and more. You can help us make this a reality by donating to the Boston Public Library Foundation today.

Here’s how your gift could help:

•  $25 purchases one book for the children’s or teen collection
• $50 purchases craft supplies for arts programming at one location
• $100 purchases an interactive drawing pad to teach children how to create digital art
• $250 purchases a tablet or e-book reader for use by children and teens
• $500 purchases an iPad with learning apps
• $1,000 supports a collection of summer reading books at one location
• $1,500 supports a year of early literacy programming at one location
• $5,000 supports a collection of e-books for children and teens
• $7,500 supports a year of Out-of-school Time programming at one branch location

Donate today, and help support the kids in your community.