Central Hawke’s Bay Bookarama funds start to work their magic

Bookarama’s lineup of jigsaw puzzles as they waited for new enthusiasts to give them a good home. Photo / Rachel Wise

Just a couple of weeks after the Takapau Lions’ annual CHB Bookarama, funds raised by the event are already filtering out into the community.

The club says this year’s Bookarama grossed $22,900, very close to last year’s total.

After a meeting this week, the club has approved donations of $1500 to the Ruahine Cadet Unit, $2000 to the CHB Libraries for the Lions Collection and $2000 to the HB Rescue Helicopter Trust.

Bookarama volunteer, Takapau Lions Club member Mike Tod, says the club wants to thank everyone who supported the annual event and made it a success.

“Without the people who donate books, and the flocks of customers buying them... there wouldn’t be a Bookarama.

“Huge thanks also go to CHB businesses Winloves and Chotes which act as drop-off points for donated books, and William Chote for the use of his furniture truck for transporting the thousands of books, as well as the Ruahine Cadets for helping pack away all the boxes of unsold books.”

While some of the higher-value unsold books have been returned to storage in Takapau for next year’s sale, the remainder has been sent to a bookseller in Napier, where they will continue their journey through the hands and bookshelves of avid readers.

Mike says it’s good to see the books continue to move on and be enjoyed.

“Bookarama is a lot of work but it’s also a lot of fun. The community looks forward to it and we enjoy seeing the regulars and catching up with old friends and meeting new people. If we didn’t enjoy it, we wouldn’t keep doing it,” Mike says.