Still, they persisted (1 of 4)

This is the first of four weekly emails you will receive in August from Lubuto Library Partners. Your help is needed to reopen the flagship Lubuto Model Library in Lusaka and ensure that the library is better than ever.

It has been a difficult few years for the Model Library. Covid limited the library's reach, but another challenge came in 2021 that further tested Lubuto's mettle: a fire destroyed the Reading Room. By the time it was extinguished, everything--including the book collection--was reduced to ashes. The devastation expressed by community members made the deep importance and impact of their beloved library clearer than ever.

Members of Lubuto's family of supporters immediately responded with donations that sustained our operations--direct services to children--while we worked to bring back the library.

A USAID grant to rebuild and expand the library had already been awarded to Lubuto before the fire. This would add Early Childhood and Teen Centers to the library's Tech Hub, Reading Room and meeting and performance spaces. Not only that, but a second USAID grant was in place to create a center to train children's librarians.

Lubuto's resilient staff and volunteers persevered through other challenges as well, including Zambia's financial crisis and a cybercrime attack. They never lost sight of the children. Their work could continue because of Lubuto's supporters.

Grant funds could help us Build Back Better, but to turn on the lights and keep them on requires your support. The library staff is determined to not only reinstate the previous average of 2,500 visits per week, but to far exceed it. At this critical time will you help them?