The Final Chapter of 2025 Starts with You

When nine-year-old Jayla stepped off the school bus in Farmville last October, she had never met an author before. She clutched her notebook tightly, eyes wide at the rows of colorful tents, the music echoing across the Longwood University campus, and the sea of kids carrying books.

Her teacher told her she’d get to meet a real author that day, someone who had written a book like the ones she loved to borrow from the library. But what Jayla didn’t expect was that the author would ask her a question:

“Do you ever write stories, Jayla?”

She nodded shyly.

“Then you’re an author too.”

By the time she boarded the bus home, Jayla had a signed book in her backpack, a smile that wouldn’t quit, and a brand-new dream: to write stories of her own.

That moment was small, but it changed everything. It was a spark—the kind that turns a reader into a dreamer, and a dreamer into a writer.

You Can Be Part of Jayla’s Story

Every year, the Virginia Children’s Book Festival welcomes thousands of kids from across the Commonwealth, many from schools where books are scarce and author visits are impossible dreams. Your gift helps make the festival free, brings incredible authors and illustrators to rural Virginia, and puts books directly into children’s hands.

This season, help us make sure every child,just like Jayla, finds their story.

Donate today and keep the story going.