Sound good to you? I thought it might.

I recently learned about a non-profit organization called Book Samaritan that supplies curriculum to home schoolers who need the extra help.

From their site:

Our ministry began with an admiration for those who homeschool
and a recognition that far too many homeschooling families struggle
to buy the curriculum and books they need.

The Book Samaritan is a not-for-profit Christian organization that
provides free books and curriculum to homeschoolers with financial
constraints. We offer a wide variety of well-known homeschooling
materials and ship all items free-of-charge.

In return, we ask only that when the recipient is finished, they pass
along the material to another homeschooling family for free or return
the items to The Book Samaritan for redistribution.

Our headquarters is a historic two-story home in Oklahoma. We pay
no rent, no utilities and are staffed solely by volunteers. We want
every resource we have to go directly into providing books and
curriculum to homeschooling families that need them.

Our organization relies on book, curriculum and money donations to
build and distribute our library of available materials. See our how to
help page to find out how to lend your support. 100% of all cash
donations are used to buy books and curriculum. Shipping charges
are donated by our local church.

The Book Samaritan is here to help take the stress out of buying
books and curriculum so homeschoolers can get down to the
business of educating their children!

How marvelous!

They work entirely on a donation basis – which means they rely on the donations of others to make it work. So if you’re not interested or in need of requesting books, you could still donate them to help others in need.

I love it when people get together to help other people. It’s the Golden rule and the 2nd greatest commandment (love your neighbor as yourself) at work in real life.

On May 28th, 2008, I put a letter in the mail to Book Samaritan requesting our remaining needs for the upcoming year and when I checked my mail on Saturday, June 7th I had a package slip waiting for me. I couldn’t believe it was that fast! We excitedly dug through the box when we got home, and we’re very pleased with the things we received. Together with what we already had, we have basically everything we need. Princess still wants a piano book, which we should be able to acquire before the fall semester starts.

So if you’re interested, check out their website and send them a letter. The only thing they require is that you donate the books back to them or to someone else when you are done with them, instead of selling them for a profit.

I think that’s a great idea.

And if you’re willing to send them your used books, by all means, go ahead and do that, too. Some home schooler somewhere will be greatly blessed.

: : : : : :

If their site should ever have any kinds of difficulties, I’ve copied the following from the site:

If you are a homeschooler and are having difficulties obtaining
curruculum due to financial constraints, simply write us, explaining
your situation. Please include the grade levels of your children and
subjects for which you need materials. The Book Samaritan strives
to help all struggling homeschooling families meet their curriculum
needs. Whether your need is large or small, please don’t hesitate to
contact us.

After receiving your request, we will do our best to assemble at least
part of what you need for the upcoming school year. The more
flexible you are in terms of materials, the more we’ll be able to help.
We will then ship your items-completely free of charge.

The only requirements are that you:

  • Agree not to resell the materials;
  • Agree either to pass them along for free to another homeschooler or send them back to us when you’re finished;

Every piece of material we distribute is marked with The Book
Samaritan’s seal, which requests that it either be passed along for
free to another homeschooling family or sent back to us for
redistribution. Our hope is that the branches of this ministry spread
and grow so that free materials for homeschoolers can eventually be
found all over the country!

To send requests (the more general your curriculum request, the easier your order will be to fill) or donate books, mail to:

Book Samaritan

1715 Grandview

Pawhuska, OK 74056

Bear in mind that the earlier in the year that you send in your request, the easier that it will be for them to meet your requests. The longer you wait the more likely that they will be low on supplies. Also, if you don’t hear back from them in a few weeks, or only receive part of what you’ve requested, they encourage you to send an additional letter for the remainder to see if they’ve received new supplies and are able to meet your needs at that point. When I sent my letter, I did list specific curriculum brands I would like to see for some subjects, and noted whether or not I would take a substitute or rather not receive anything if it wasn’t available. I don’t think they mind – as long as you’re polite about it.

Again, I encourage you to send in your gently used books if you are able. Someone out there may need it!

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Amber

Hey, y’all! I’m Amber and I wear many hats. I drink a ton of coffee and I’m constantly sweeping crumbs off the floor. After 20+ years of homeschooling, we are starting over at preschool with our fourth, Lil Miss Mouse. She keeps us young and she’s the main reason for my excessive coffee consumption. Drink up!