The 21st Great Grownup Spelling Bee to benefit the Kalamazoo Public Library's Ready to Read program will be held at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, Nov 15 at the Fetzer Center at WMU. Jill Lansky, the KPL's Youth Outreach Coordinator, explains that the fun event, which pits teams from different organizations against each other in a speed-spelling contest, helps provide funds to buy books for children ages 0 - 5 years old. In 2022, they were able to provide 23,000 free books to families through pediatrician's offices and other outlets.
Community Engagement Coordinator Karen Trout contributes a preview of events in December and the New Year, including the 2024 Reading Together selection: Yellowface, by R.F. Kuang. The author will come to Kalamazoo in March for a public event.
Conversations with creators and organizers of the arts scene in West Michigan, hosted by Cara Lieurance
Great Grownup Spelling Bee helps put 23,000 books in children's hands
![Karen Trout and Jill Lansky of the Kalamazoo Public Library](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ff18d66/2147483647/strip/true/crop/750x562+0+0/resize/880x659!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fc2%2F46%2Fff08382b445e9882d7f0c2b2cc8e%2Fkpl.jpg)
C. Lieurance