Before 2023 comes to a close and we welcome 2024, we wanted to take a few minutes on this chilly (but absolutely gorgeous) Tucson morning to thank all of you for supporting us and our work to spread book joy in 2023. We had a BLAST of a year. Here’s a little rundown of what your favorite bookish gnome and their helpers got up to this year:
- In January 2023, we increased our monthly hidden books from 30 to 45 copies every month
- In March, we (finally!) got our 501(c)(3) nonprofit status (and we invited best-selling author TJ Klune – who’s been an amazing supporter of our work – to join us as a founding board member of our nonprofit, and he said “yes!”)
- In May, we were featured on NBC’s TODAY show (for real – it was wild, unbelievable, and so fun!)
- This year, we also became Tucson’s (and Arizona’s!) first Book Sanctuary and joined “Unite Against Book Bans,” locally launching an anti-censorship movement that now includes one of our local bookstores (shoutout to Mostly Books!) and the Tucson Festival of Books.
- All year, we’ve participated in a lot of fun collaborations and events with local organizations, including:
- Partnered with #ThisisTucson to hide Books at #ThisIsTucson’s (first ever!) Tucson Together Market
- Partnered with Big Read to hide books in support of Big Read Tucson
- Partnered with the Poetry Center to hide books of poetry in support of National Poetry Month
- Hosted a “solutions-focused” book-hiding event at Borderlands Brewing Company in partnership with Caitlin Schmidt, a local reporter and founder of the Tucson Agenda
- Partnered with the Eon Youth Lounge (part of SAAF) and Reveille Men’s Chorus to hide books at the Glitter Ball and Reveille Men’s Chorus Spring Show
- Launched the “Solutions-Focused Community Book Club” in partnership with The Tucson Agenda & the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona
- Partnered with the Korean Rose and the LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce to hide books at the Korean Rose and the LGBTQ+ Chamber of Commerce Breakfast
- Hid books and participated in Trail Dust Town’s Throwback Book Fair
- Hid books, presented, and brought TJ Klune along with us to chat with the folks at the Stroke & Brain Injury Support Group through a partnership with Encompass Health
- Partnered with the American Literary Translators Association to help promote their annual conference (which they hosted in Tucson this year!) to spread an appreciation for books reflecting cultures and perspectives from around the world
- Collaborated with Discover Marana to do a special community book-hiding day for this community north of Tucson (and that same weekend, attended and hid MORE books at the Reveille Men’s Chorus’ winter premiere!)
WHEW. Needless to say, 2023 was a year FULL of bookish joy. Since launching in 2021, we have hidden nearly 1,300 FREE books around the greater Tucson community, with just over 750 free books being hidden in 2023 alone. This is no small feat, and we couldn’t do it without all of you and your support! Words can’t express how grateful we are to all of you for stepping up and helping us. All of you (and your trust in us to share the joy of books and reading with our community!) mean the world to us.
We believe that books and stories are one of the best representations of our shared humanity – stories have a way of connecting us to each other across our differences and building empathy. Through our bookish scavenger hunts, we hope to bring a little more joy (and perhaps a little more understanding!) to our community. Honestly, who doesn’t need more bookish magic in their lives?
As many of you know, we have been working hard to raise $10K to keep the book-sharing momentum going in 2024! We’ve had some great success (thanks to nearly 60 of you who’ve donated through our PayPal fundraising Campaign and offline through outright gifts), but we still have a way to go. As we near the end of the year, if you’ve been on the fence and haven’t yet donated, please consider doing so. We would love to enter the new year with a bang! Here’s where things currently stand:
And, don’t forget that anyone who gives $100 or more to our fundraiser will be entered to win some really lovely bookish gifts from local businesses and partners. In fact, we’ll be raffling off a lovely set of bookish goodies (including EIGHT books, a tote, mug, book light, candle, and gift certificate!) from Bookman’s during this first week in January. So anyone who makes a $100 gift before midnight today will be entered to win the Bookmans gift basket (including folks who’ve already donated at this level!). We also have a few more items to raffle off in the early part of the year, so even if you don’t win this set, there are some truly lovely items to come!
Or if you cannot donate now, we hope you’ll continue to share this fundraiser with others in our community who care about spreading joy through books and reading. Being a connector and amplifier is also incredibly helpful!!! Our bookish community is so beautiful and supportive – it blows us away ❤
You all are the best. Thank you. Happy New Year and best wishes to all of you for 2024!!!
-Emily, Jody, and Mary Ellen, Co-Founders, Tucson Tome Gnome-
Tucson Tome Gnome 