Jefferson Parish Library Summer Reading Program Enhanced by the Generosity of New York City’s Central Park Storytellers

From New Yorkers to the People of Louisiana with Love

Thanks to the generosity of Central Park Storytellers of New York City, Jefferson Parish Library’s Summer Reading Program has been enriched with the addition of programs by local children’s performers, funded by the Central Park Storytellers’ donation—a way for the storytellers to make a donation to the children of Jefferson Parish through its library Summer Reading Program.

Through their personal donations and fund raising, the Central Park Storytellers were able to provide the children of Jefferson Parish with six storytelling programs at public libraries this summer, four of which are still to come. Performances made possible by CPS include:

June 13 - Philip Melancon – “Melonsongs” at West Bank Regional Library

June 29 - North Kenner Library - Greyhawk Perkins – “Songs of Friends”

Wed., July 12, 1:30 PM – Rosedale Library - David Winkler-Schmit - “The Story-Go-Round”

Tues., July 18, 10:30 AM - Adella Gautier Terrytown Library – “Paws, Claws, and a Pebble to Wish Upon”

June 22 at Westwego Library and
Tues, August 1, 12:30 PM at Terrytown Library - Vee Duensing – “Fractured Fun Fairytales”

Reading in the New York Times, about the lack of government support after Katrina and thinking about the children and their parents who are suffering from homelessness and lack of community, Diane Wolkstein, director of the Central Park Storytellers, had the idea to organize a storytelling benefit to fund a storytelling program to bring joy and comfort to both the storytellers and the people in Louisiana. In this effort, Diane was joined by many people, storytellers Regina Ress, Therese Plair, and Ron Sopyla; Lynn Carter of the Scandinavia House, and Christian Sonne of the Hans Christian Andersen Committee, as well as anonymous friends

New Yorkers, storytellers and other folks, having experienced trauma and grief after September 11th, 2001, and remembering how the country responded to them during those difficult days, were grateful to be able to reach across the country to Louisiana’s children, knowing that stories help to heal and inspire with vision and possibility. According to the Central Park Storytellers, they “are proud to have contributed to the library storytelling program and hope that storytellers and story listeners of Louisiana will enjoy stories of inspiration, fun, and courage, for surely it is time for all of these.”