SUNDRE — A recently wrapped-up fundraiser not only generates revenue for the local library but also promotes partner restaurants.
Books2Eat is an international celebration of good books and good food that seeks to combine literary and culinary culture, and is annually observed early in April.
“The first year we launched Books2Eat (in 2019), it was done in-library,” said Joy Willihnganz, Sundre Municipal Library programmer, later adding the second event that was being planned in 2020 was cancelled because of the pandemic.
“We had (restaurants) donate food that represented something from a book, or related to a book topic,” Willihnganz said about the inaugural event. “They came into the library and served the food.”
People who purchased tickets at the time were then invited to attend the event in-person at the library, where they could sample the culinary creations while getting a chance to socialize and vote for their favourite themed display, she said, adding the library also had available related books that matched the themes selected by the restaurants’ owners.
“We had quite a good turnout for that one,” she said. “That of course required people to come into the library, which we couldn’t do last year. So, last year and this year followed the same format.”
This year’s partners were the Piros and Boondox family restaurants as well as Backwoods Bakery and Cafe. They each selected a specialized meal of their choice and provided it at a discount for the library, she said.
“We sold the tickets and selected some recommendations for books or DVDs that could accompany that meal,” she said.
But instead of hosting a social gathering at the library on April 1, people who bought tickets instead went directly to the restaurant to grab a takeout order.
“Participants just had to go with their ticket to the restaurant at a designated time on the day of the event and pick up their meals ready to go,” she said.
A little more than $650 was raised with a total of 76 tickets sold, she said.
“It was very well received,” she said. “As far as we heard, the restaurants were pleased. We’re really grateful for their participation with us in this fundraiser. We were certainly thrilled to be able to promote businesses and have their support.”
Feedback from participants was also positive, with input from some people indicating a keen interest in returning to an approach similar to the library’s inaugural Books2Eat in 2019.
“We did hear that people are eager to be able to go back to a format similar to the very first event we did,” she said. “We’ll look at what next year holds; we’ll do some event for Books2Eat and we’ll just see what we can do with the format.”
But one way or another, Books2Eat will be back, she added.
The Big Book Sale is the next fundraiser on the docket and is scheduled to take place April 26-30. While proceeds from Books2Eat go to general revenue to help sustain library operations, the book sale is fundraising specifically for a new project to replace the children’s books shelving, she said.
The library is a registered charity run by a volunteer board of directors.
