Sustain Youth Led Literacy Mission, Books N Bros
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Hi my name is Winnie Thompson, and I am raising funds to support a business I started with my son, Sidney Keys III when he was only 10 years old!
Sidney is a St. Louis, MO, now 17 year-old native, entrepreneur, and literary activist. After visiting a local Black-owned bookstore, I went live in that store with Sidney to showcase what was in our backyard, a literary gem! The video went viral with over 65,000 views! Simply of my son reading a book with characters that reflected him.
After that moment, Sidney decided to take his love for reading to the next level and create Books N Bros! A book club for boys to amplify African-American literacy. Having multiple meet-ups with different boys, ages 7-13 years old, as a way to advocate for African American literacy, he is paving the way for change.
Books N Bros has since grown from 7 members to reaching over 800 internationally, participated in 3 fellowships, given over $15,000 in resources back to their local community, and more! You may recognize him from appearances like: Oprah’s magazine, Good Morning America, CNN, Huffington Post or on Disney+ as a MARVEL Hero!
And while we've experienced very high moments, we've also overcome a ton of adversity.
- The pandemic was a bit of a whirlwind, while we were able to continue shipping books, hundreds of our packages got lost or damaged, therefore that meant we sacrificed $$$ of refunds in honoring our customers.
- We relocated from St. Louis, MO to Atlanta, GA to support Sidney's educational dream. He's since been a student at Pace Academy and entering his senior year. While chasing his personal needs is necessary, we're still rebuilding from such a loss in 2020 and essentially starting over.
- Oh, I also had a baby and pushed through a ton of post-partum depression. Books N Bros honestly almost didn't survive because Sidney also struggled with virtual learning during the pandemic. So we paused things to get our mental health in order.
But a blessing in disguise came to help us stay inspired. He was contacted by an indie publishing house with a book deal. He proudly has the opportunity to share his newly released book, ‘Books N Bros: 44 Inspiring Books for Black Boys'.
We're now getting back to our roots in hosting in-person book club gatherings, at our small but mighty coworking space and giving back to our new community while extending the love to hometown STL as well.
What do we need funds for?
- Office rent: $500 per month. We have a private suite with access to a larger space for activities with our members
- Books! On average we spend $7-$11 on one book per child to have brand new books
- Materials: We ship out curated boxes to boys nationally to partake in the experience. Materials include swag for the boxes, actually ordering the boxes ($3 each), and branded material
- Support: Mom had a baby, who's now 2. We don't have family in Atlanta, and while our village is growing, we can't let it impact the experience. Being able to hire a Customer Success Associate to ensure packages go out in a timely manner, inquiries are responded to, and additional hiccups we may face, paying them a starting rate of $15 per hour for 6 months would cost $9,000.
- Essentially to sustain. Books N Bros will turn 7 in August. We want to be here much longer and reach more families with your help.
Thank you in advance for your support!
Organizer
Winnie Thompson
Organizer
Atlanta, GA