Nabhan Rashid has been finding treasured books here for years, choosing one for himself, at age two, on his first visit to the Children’s Book Bank.
He sees it as a special place where children, teens and families can talk about the books they have enjoyed and the stories they want to read, while they search the shelves for more to dive into.
Growing up, Rashid visited often to choose new books until he was 13; later he started volunteering at the book bank. Now 18, the computer science student at the University of Toronto also works there part time.
“I remember being one of those kids coming in, and I want to be the person that I remember who gave me my love for books,” he said, describing the friendly faces that would invite him in to explore the shelves upon shelves he remembers seeing as a small child looking up.
Children’s Book Bank manager of inventory, outreach and community partnership Megan Dee. She works with thousands of books in the warehouse, sorting donations, cleaning books and ensuring all locations are well-stocked.
“What I loved about the Children’s Book Bank as a kid is I could read at my own pace. I had as much time as I needed to read it, which led me to read every single book I ever took from the book bank.”