By Andrew Martins
More than 700 dictionaries recently made their way to the hands of area elementary students, as the Hillsborough Rotary Club hand-delivered their annual donation to Hillsborough and Manville pupils.
The move is part of an annual effort to help kids get a firmer grasp of the English language, while also showing the importance of community engagement, Hillsborough Township Committeeman and Rotary member Greg Burchette said.
“It is never too early to instill a sense of community spirit in our children,” Burchette said.
Distribution of the approximately 750 dictionaries took place over the course of two days on November 2 and November 3, Rotary officials said. Third graders in Hillsborough were given their copies at Triangle Elementary School, Amsterdam Elementary School, Woods Road Elementary, Woodfern Elementary, Sunnymead Elementary and Hillsborough Elementary School.
The books were also distributed to third graders at Weston Elementary School in Manville.
“The first word we typically ask the students to look up in their new dictionaries is charity, which we hope sparks a classroom conversation about how each of us can contribute to a better community,” Burchette said.
According to Rotary Club officials, the dictionary donation effort steams from the group’s philanthropic arm, which runs multiple fundraisers throughout the year, including the August Rotary Fair. All proceeds collected through those efforts go back to the community in various ways, including high school scholarships, the food pantry, autism research and disaster relief.
