Inspired by the book Reading Magic by Mem Fox, Books for Babes began in 2015. In the beginning, books were collected by friends and family and delivered to the hospital every few months. Once delivered to the hospital, hospital staff would deliver books to babies and their caregivers.
In 2017, Books for Babes expanded and a volunteer began to personally deliver books to the new babies at the hospital. Each book came with a bookmark with tips on how to read to your baby.
In 2020, Books for Babes became an official 501c(3) organization. With official non-profit status, Books for Babes was able to distribute over 500 books through Little Free Libraries and various drive through events. Click here to see our 2020 Annual Report.
Now in 2021, we have goals to build partnerships and hand out 1,000 books or more to encourage families to read early and read often.
Mission Statement
Reading aloud can make a world of difference in the life of a child. That is why Books for Babes has set out to provide every baby with its first book. We partner with community hospitals and doctor's offices to provide books to babies at birth. However, we do not stop there. We also provide resources to caregivers to show how to read aloud to their baby and teach them that it is just as important as reading to your school age child. This will help caregivers to read aloud, creating a special bond between parent, child, and book. Books for Babes wants to inspire families to begin their read aloud journey at birth.