ABC Schools : Ellen E. Carver, Legendary School Volunteer, Honored

The late Ellen E. Carver, a legendary school volunteer and storyteller, was honored last week during a board meeting of the ABC Unified School District.

Carver, who died last month at the age of 84, volunteered at the Elliott Elementary School library for 21 years. She began in 1971 after the death of her husband, Charles Carver, a longtime school employee also known for his volunteerism.

When a friend told Ellen Carver, a former schoolteacher, that the school was in need of volunteers because of budget cuts, she decided to help in the library and tell stories to students.

She learned that if she told a story from a seldom-read book, it would suddenly become the most popular in the library, friends said.

Some of those honoring her at the board meeting were people who heard her stories as children and, later, whose children also enjoyed her tales.

The white-haired volunteer became a familiar sight to area residents as she walked between her home and the school. Carver estimated that she had walked more than 2,100 miles to and from school and told more than 700 stories to about 12,000 students.