Engage & Volunteer

Community Participation is Key to the Festival's Success

When you were younger, what was a favorite book? Did someone read bedtime stories to you? Did you experience the excitement that reading books brought to your life?

Simple things matter! Join us in supporting our children to build great experiences and memories around reading and writing. Together, let's create and cultivate a love of reading in the lives of children and youth around central Illinois' schools and communities.

Ready to get involved?

Volunteers are needed for the Community Day Celebration to help attendees navigate the program of author presentations, hands-on activities, performances, puppetry, storytelling, and music. Sign up below.

Host an Activity Table During the Community Day Celebration

Advertise your business or organization and support schools, children and their families. Organizations, small business, clubs, and community friends are invited to host an engaging activity table during the Community Day Celebration, on Saturday, September 26th at the I-Hotel and Conference Center.

To host an Activity Table, please reach out to Mackenzie Gillespie at dankle@illinois.edu.

You can also...

Donate Books

Not all of our public schools have funds available to purchase books and make them available for students. In order to support schools and make sure that students have books available to read before the author visits, we count to the support of donations of friends and sponsors.

If you or your organization would like to make a donation of books to the Festival or to our schools, you can make a gift online and we will purchase books for you. Select 'Youth Literature Festival' under 'Invest in Research and Outreach.'

Become a Sponsor

Are you interested in sponsoring an author or supporting the Festival? Please check out the Sponsors page.