Between Jan. 21 and Jan. 24, the Mary Norton Clapp Library collected used and new donations for Children’s Books for Altadena. According to First-year, Transfer, & Student Success Librarian Samantha Hilton, the library was one of ten locations collecting books — other locations included Vroman’s Bookstore, Chevalier’s Books, Book Soup, The Last Bookstore, Bob Baker Marionette Theater, Arcana Books, Annabelle’s Book Club, Secret Headquarters and Other Books, Comics and Zines.
Hilton said that between all donation locations, thousands of K–12 books were donated and that at Occidental specifically, she lost track of how many books were donated after 400.
“I knew there was an appetite for being able to do a book drive […] but nothing that was on this scale,” Hilton said. “It was a little bit overwhelming, in good and bad ways.”
Carmela Beyer is the founder and sole organizer of Children’s Books for Altadena. Beyer said that following the initial devastation of the recent LA fires, she felt the need to do something to help her community. She said she created Children’s Books for Altadena intending to support teachers, local bookstores and businesses, as well as gifting books to students who had already lost so much.
“Children’s Books for Altadena came from [an] undying call to serve my community that I think was instilled inside me from my family, growing up around educators and becoming one myself,” Beyer said. “I think I’ve always had this need to help others, to show up for others and especially for children.”
According to Beyer, Children’s Books for Altadena started as a GoFundMe to help rebuild classroom libraries and replenish curriculum supplies, workbooks and book collections for teachers and students, specifically those from the five burned-down Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) schools.
“I published the social media and the GoFundMe from my parents’ dining room table. I run everything out of my childhood bedroom,” Beyer said.
Beyer said she noticed a lot of people wanting to do more than just give monetary donations.
“I kept hearing people saying exactly how I felt when I started this, which was this need to physically do something,” Beyer said. “The book drive was [also] so I could help other people that want to help fulfill that need inside them [and] help support local small independent bookstores.”
While Occidental did not match the local business location Beyer was initially requesting, Hilton said she thought it was a perfect fit. She said she had seen the @CBforAltadena Instagram post asking for local places to collect donations and reached out as a neighborhood-adjacent place that wanted to do something.
“Oxy does a good job of volunteering and staying connected,” Hilton said. “A book drive makes sense for a library. It’s something we can do.”

Sarah Pickle, the college librarian and director of the Academic Commons, said that while they had only initially put out one collection box, they ended up with at least eight overflowing boxes within the first day. Pickle said she, Hilton and Christin Boomhower, the acquisitions specialist, helped transport the books from Occidental to Beyer’s downtown storage location. According to Hilton, they took a total of five carloads.
“We were expecting a couple of boxes, but it ended up being hundreds of books,” Boomhower said. “Every time we came back and checked, there were more […] It was really great to see the support.”
Donors were encouraged to bring their favorite children’s books. Hilton said she saw several copies of Wings of Fire, the Hunger Games trilogy, Magic Treehouse, Percy Jackson and The American Girl Doll books.
Pickle said she thought this prompt was a great way to bring another element of humanity to the drive.
“Everyone seemed to pass by and have [personal] experiences,” Pickle said. “I saw Goodnight Moon and thought of all the times that I read that to my daughter.”
According to Hilton, one of the reasons Occidental was able to collect so many books was because of sub-drives collecting donations, one of which was ran by Administrative & Advising Assistant Angela Vawter, a PTA board member at Mount Washington Elementary.
Vawter said that after seeing Hilton’s email about the drive, she reached out to the principal of Mount Washington Elementary and put a collection box outside the front school office. Vawter said she was able to collect two full boxes and two heavy bags of books, which she dropped off at the Occidental library.
“Just knowing the books were being collected to help rebuild school, classroom and home libraries left us with a really good feeling,” Vawter said. “The effort and coordination of the book drive led by Sam and the library staff just further solidifies the place and space Oxy holds within the community here on the Eastside.”
According to Hilton, neither Occidental nor Children’s Books for Altadena is collecting more books at the moment. Beyer said she is currently in the process of organizing and distributing the books that were donated. She said that if people want to help, she welcomes volunteers and encourages them to reach out to cbforaltadena@gmail.com with the subject “VOLUNTEER” and mention their hours available in their email.
“I think for children who have lost everything, holding a beautiful, touching, important book that has helped others and inspired others — and even just comforted others — is what I want to prioritize,” Beyer said. “I want these books to feel like a gift, not a donation.”
Contact Ava Anderson at aanderson5@oxy.edu