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Books Help the Children of Hurricane Katrina

Librarians from Louisiana express their appreciation for When I Feel Sad and When I Feel Scared

Cornelia sent fifty copies of these two books to the State Library of Louisiana, with a note:

“Dear Children of Louisiana,
I hope that you will feel better after reading my books When I Feel Sad and When I Feel Scared. I felt sad and scared when Hurricane Katrina came to your state, and it helps to share that feeling, and cuddle close to someone you love.
Your friend,
Cornelia Maude Spelman

The state library sent copies around to its branch libraries, and Cornelia has received several letters from the branch librarians; one of them wrote:

Dear Ms. Spelman,
I returned from my vacation today to find your note and books on my desk. Your gift to the West Baton Rouge Parish Library and the children it serves is very much appreciated. I wish that I had been familiar with your books earlier, but am thankful that I know of them now. They are so appropriate for the preschool child. They are a valuable addition to our parenting center collection.
They are comforting. I will recommend them often.
For a while West Baton Rouge was home to more than two thousand people displaced by Katrina. They were housed in three shelters and in eight motels. More than seven hundred displaced students were enrolled in our schools. Our motels are still filled with displaced families. Three hundred displaced students are still enrolled in our schools. The havoc Katrina and Rita brought to Louisiana and her families is far from over. The challenges our families and communities face in rebuilding are immense. The destruction is still beyond comprehension.
Judy Boyce
Youth Services Librarian
West Baton Rouge Parish Library

Albert Whitman and Company, the publisher of “The Way I Feel” series, also donated a hundred of these two titles to the victims of Katrina, and these books were personally distributed by volunteers to evacuees in shelters in Texas and Georgia.