Marin Program Writes New Chapter For Old Books

SAN RAFAEL (CBS 5) ― Marilyn Nemzer is getting ready to send thousands of used books to schools around the world, and around the Bay Area.

"What I love is hearing the reaction of the teachers, who come in and go, 'I've been looking all over for this. You have them, you have them!'" she explains with a smile.

Since Marilyn founded The Global Book Exchange in 1987, she's sent donated textbooks and story books to more than forty nations, including Third World classrooms where reading material is scarce. The non-profit also replaced thousands of books lost after Hurricane Katrina. It all started when private schools donated old textbooks to her tutoring service.

"I ended up with about 80 boxes of books in our garage," Marilyn remembers.

So she publicized a book giveaway.

"Teachers had come from all over the Bay Area, had read about it, and there was not one book left!"

Bigger donations came by the box -- even semi truck.

Marilyn says, "I was stunned to learn that schools were dumping their books, burning their books, doing anything, storing them."

Now, Marilyn takes them at the Book Exchange in San Rafael. On this day, a parent volunteer drops off fifty boxes from Daniel Webster Elementary in San Francisco.

"The books we brought today are a combination of thirty years of outdated textbooks, some newer than others," explains Katherine Doumani. "I can't think of a better way of giving back to the community than reuse what we have rather than throwing into the landfill."

What one school can't use, someone else can: whether teachers, or parents like Caroline McCahey, homeschooler to her nine children.

"It's amazing to me how many math books are discarded in great condition," Caroline says. "To me, two plus two is four. It was four ten years ago, it will be four ten years from now!"

Now Caroline's family thanks Marilyn with their time.

"I like to volunteer here," says daughter Chiarra. "I like what they're doing here."

The Book Exchange sends out about 100,000 books a year, and while books are always welcome, Marilyn says the critical need right now is for money to stay afloat.

The rent-free location the Book Exchange had called home for two decades is no longer safe to occupy, so Marilyn's paying to rent the former Santa Margarita Elementary School in the Terra Linda area of San Rafael.

"We basically need $40,000 a year to make this project stay alive," Marilyn says.

So for giving old books new life and promoting literacy worldwide, this week's Jefferson Award in the Bay Area goes to Marilyn Nemzer.

By Sharon Chin

Related Link:

* The Global Book Exchange

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