Two NW Kansas towns awarded state book festival grants

TOPEKA–Kansas First Lady Mary Brownback announced the winners of the 2015 Kansas Book Festival Grants during a news conference this week at the State Library.

Three western Kansas towns are among the winners.

“The Kansas Book Festival works year round to promote literacy and encourage a life-long love of reading,” said First Lady Brownback. “These grants will help libraries purchase new technology and a wide range of reading materials for many reading levels.”

The 15 public and school libraries will share in receiving a portion of the $11,160 in grants from corporate and private sponsors.

2015 Technology Grants
Wamego Public Library
Wamego
$ 929

Wallace County Public Schools
Sharon Springs
$ 2,000

McCune Osage Township Library
McCune
$ 600

Washburn Rural High School Library
Topeka
$ 645

Clearwater Public Library
Clearwater
$1,968

2015 Book Grants
Oaklawn Elementary School Library
Wichita
$ 500

Formoso Public Library
Formoso
$ 500

Earl M. Lawson Elementary Library
Leavenworth
$ 800

Vermillion Public Library
Vermillion
$ 300

Elmendaro Township Library
Hartford
$ 500

Harper Public Library
Harper
$ 178

Augusta High School Library
Augusta
$ 800

Horton Public Library
Horton
$ 500

Pioneer Memorial Public Library
Colby
$ 440

Dodge City Public Library
Dodge City
$ 500

molly-and-the-tornado — Matt Deighton, a 2015 featured author, survived the 2007 Greensburg tornado along with his dog Mollly.

The Kansas Book Festival Fund is a 501c3 organization through the Topeka Community Foundation. The grants are funded through corporate and private sponsors.

The 2015 Kansas Book Festival will be held September 12 at the Kansas State Capitol in Topeka. All age groups are invited to attend the free, day-long event. To learn more, visit kansasbookfestival.com.