The new location allowed for the event to be bigger and better than ever and had one rule: take as many books as you want!
Leading up to the event, 30,000 books were donated by the greater Northeastern PA community, beating the total from the 9th annual event by 10,000.
Throughout the two-day event, over 600 book lovers gathered at the Fairgrounds and took home 17,000 books.
The event’s goal is to make sure no book ends up in a landfill. Any books leftover were either brought to Diamond K paper recycling facility in Scranton or the Wayne County Recycling Center, allowing for 6,000lbs of paper to be recycled for new life.
“What a fantastic job the volunteers did to make this such a success!” said SEEDS Chair Katharine Dodge. “We, at SEEDS, are so grateful for the lugging, sorting, and stacking of 30,000 books. And for the community members who gave homes to so many of them!”
Jenna Mauder, SEEDS Assistant Chair and Free Book Swap Coordinator, said, “This event started with one goal in mind - to see that books don’t end up in landfills. Only in my wildest dreams would we be able to say that we have kept 125,000 books out of landfills in the past 10 years. We are forever grateful to the sponsors and community that supports this annual event. I can’t wait to do it again next year!”
Over the past several years, this annual free event has relocated 70,000 pieces of media, and many went to new homes and local families in NEPA. It is one of the single largest recycling events in the area.
The Free Book Swap won an Environmental Partnership Award in 2019 given by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council.
The event was made possible by 50 volunteers and the following generous sponsors and partners: Turano Insurance, Frey Fetsock Funeral Home, Pioneer Construction Co., Inc, The Dime Bank, REMAXWayne, Hamlin Dental Center, Apple Pond Farm, Wayne Bank, Dirlam Bros Lumber Co Inc, Citizens Savings Bank, Nature's Grace, Roche Supply Inc, The East Shore LLC, Wayne/Pike County Farm Bureau, Scarfalloto's Towne House Diner/Restaurant, Wayne Conservation District, Dyberry Creek Farm, Community Vocational Service, Inc, Here & Now Brewing Company, Quality Printing, Brookfield Renewables, Platform Industries, Wayne County Public Library, and Honesdale National Bank and a grant from the Wayne County Community Foundation.
To stay in the loop for the Book Swap, visit the Free Book Swap website, visit or sign up for the monthly SEEDS e-newsletter.
Visit the Sustainable Energy Education and Development Support website for more information.
[Posted: October 14, 2021] PA Environment Digest
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