Residents pay school library fines for neighborhood children

By Harriet Sokmensuer
| 4:00 a.m. May 13, 2014

Central-Cocoanut neighborkid Tatiana Johnson, 11, reads at Mary Dean Park as her sister Honestey, 2, and her cousin Camille Homer, 13, listen.

Sarasota
Neighbors

In an effort to promote reading, residents of the Central-Cocoanut area have paid off school library fines for neighborhood children.

Neighbors contributed more than $245 to help the children, who attend Gocio Elementary, check out books hassle-free.

In November, Gocio Elementary reported to Sarasota Community Studio that 18 of the 74 Central-Cocoanut neighborhood children attending Gocio were unable to borrow books and materials from the school library because of an outstanding fine.

Since 2013, Sarasota Community Studio has been working with Central-Cocoanut families to make the neighborhood the best at reading in Sarasota.

The library fines were raised in one week, with extra money left over to pay any future outstanding fines.

"To see the kids iniate the effort and have their nieghbors help them change a situation not for themselves but for other children was really gratify," says Dr. Allison Pinto, executive director of Sarasota Community Studio.

For more information, go to sarasotacommunitystudio.org.

To contact Harriet Sokmensuer, please email [email protected]