TURNERS FALLS — Now is perhaps a better time than ever for young readers to pick up a good book, with a recent donation bolstering a home library initiative geared largely toward bilingual English and Spanish-speaking households.

The “Love2Grow” program, offered by Montague Catholic Social Ministries in association with the Gill-Montague Regional School District Coordinated Family and Community Engagement program, aims to provide local families with high-quality books and items to create a home library. That goal is now receiving a boost, thanks to a $1,000 donation from the Traprock Center for Peace and Justice.

According to Coordinated Family and Community Engagement Coordinator Mary King, Love2Grow started in 2021 “as a way to reach out to families that we knew needed help” during the COVID-19 pandemic. With health risks limiting social contact, staff would go from home to home around once per month and drop off “really high-quality board books,” she said. The books are designed to be durable and the content tends to emphasize peace, justice and the environment.

“Reading together is a chance to reinforce the emotional bonds between parent and child, a way to nourish young brains and stimulate creativity,” reads a statement from King explaining the program. “The ultimate goal is to foster cross-cultural understanding and to build a foundation for a more peaceful, just and sustainable world one exceptional book at a time.”

To help establish a proper library in each home, deliveries include bookshelves, blankets, backpacks and even homemade quilts.

“The concept was to create a space in the home where reading was taking place … and making a safe space in the home,” King said. “This program really went to people’s houses when they needed it.”

As many of the involved families speak Spanish, the Love2Grow program also promotes literacy for the whole family. The initiative teaches parents and caregivers the skills to become dedicated teachers in their own right. Parents often learn English words along with their kids.

Each year, a few dozen families have participated in the program, according to King. With pandemic limitations largely lifted, families can attend Montague Catholic Social Ministries playgroup sessions at 41 Third St. on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m. to engage with the Love2Grow program. Here, families not only have the opportunity to receive books monthly, but have the opportunity to foster a sense of community between children, King emphasized.

“They’re just biologically attuned to being together,” she said of kids.

Additionally, Coordinated Family and Community Engagement serves children with special needs during weekly 1 p.m. early intervention playgroups on Tuesdays at Hillcrest Elementary School. King requests that those interested in attending call the school at 413-863-5926.

Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-930-4231 or jmendoza@recorder.com.

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