A $500 gift from the Troy United Women’s League helped purchase 40 new books for the Goshen Elementary School Library.

“We were able to purchase books that we probably would not have been able to have otherwise,” said Susan Renfroe, librarian. “I wanted to purchase books in the areas of greatest need for our library, mainly in the areas of sports and minorities.”

Two of the series books that Renfroe chose are “Ruby and the Booker Boys” and “Miami Jackson” and the students could hardly wait to get those books in their hands.

Such transitional books are important because, as a student progresses in the reading program, sometimes chapter books are too big a leap.

Renfroe said reading is vastly important in all subject matter areas and in life in general.

“We want our students to not only read but to love to read,” she said. “By offering books of varied interests, the students can pick out books about things they like. When they read about things that interest them, the more they enjoy reading and the more they are encouraged to read.”

The Troy United Women’s League adopts a school each year and helps fund needs for the library.

The League’s “cash cow” that funds its school adoption projects is the annual banquet in celebration of Black History Month. Banquet ticket sales and program advertising make it possible for the TUWL to support the children of Pike County.

Renfroe expressed appreciation to the TUWL for its generosity and for its interest in and support of the schools of Pike County.

“Because of the support of the Troy United Women’s League, we are able to have more books for our students,” she said. “The more choices, the more they will read. We want to thank the Troy United Women’s League for their gift of books to the students of Goshen Elementary School.”