Not the Same Old Story : Homeless Children Get Crack at Books

Don Collier, an 8-year-old homeless boy living at a North Hollywood shelter for the homeless, missed a week of school this month because his mother could not afford bus fare to get him there.

“It’s really a shame because Don loves to read,” said Bonnie Collier, 30, his mother. “But my husband lost his job as a roofer and I’ve been trying to save money.”

On Saturday, Don made up a little for lost time. He and 14 other children living at Valley Shelter received free books and listened to stories told by a group of volunteers devoted to instilling a love of reading in disadvantaged children.

It was the sixth time since June that members of Reading Is Fundamental of Southern California, a nonprofit organization financed by private donations and the federal government, have gone to the shelter to distribute books.

The educational session, featuring a harmless 4-foot-long gopher snake brought by a Los Angeles zoo employee, appeared to go down as easily as the powdered-sugar doughnuts that volunteers handed out. The children giggled and screeched as volunteers Elizabeth Olliff, a nursery school teacher, and Cindy Richards, an educational curator at the zoo, read stories and poems about bats, snakes and spiders.

“I think it’s a wonderful program,” Collier said as she watched the snake wrap itself around her son’s chest, much to his delight.

Volunteer Cella Morey said Reading Is Fundamental has been giving books to children in public schools in poor areas of the city for years. Volunteers decided earlier this year to expand the program to reach homeless children, many of whom are not enrolled in school or miss classes.

Valley Shelter, a 2-story former hotel, is the only shelter that RIF volunteers visit, but other shelters will be added in coming months, Morey said..

Donna Moore, a shelter resident for 3 weeks, said her four children have “more or less been watching themselves” while she looks for an apartment the family can afford. Moore’s 16-year-old son has been attending school, but her 9-year-old has been staying at the shelter to care for the other two children.

“They just love to read, and they’re always after me to get them a new book,” Moore said. “Tonight, they’ll have some.”