Durban — Donations of quality second-hand books are growing, aided by people like 11-year-old Grade 6 Glenwood Prep pupil Milan Edwards who took the initiative to encourage his classmates, friends and family to join the cause.
The Denis Hurley Centre-backed Street Lit campaign, supported by the Independent on Saturday, needs more to make sure to hit (and beat) the target of 10052 books. The number is inspired by Nelson Mandela in the month the world honours him – it’s one for every day he spent in prison.
Street Lit, which has vendors dotted in and around the city in bright lime green branding, enables homeless and formerly homeless people to sell quality second-hand books to help them earn a living, rebuild their lives and enable and encourage more people to read.
Project facilitator Illa Thompson said: “Conservatively, if there are 15 vendors selling at any one time, and if they each sell five books a day on average, we need to source 75 fresh books a day to keep their stock viable.”
That is apart from pop-ups and events, where volumes are higher.
Independent on Saturday has a large drop-off point in the foyer of the Greyville office which we hope we need to clear many times a day to make room for the next delivery.
Contact Thompson on books@ denishurleycentre.org or for a full list of drop-off points, see www. denishurleycentre.org/page/mandela-month-2024--support-street-lit or www.facebook.com/StreetLitDurban
Independent on Saturday