More than 300 books from the UCF Book Festival were recently donated to Florida Hospital in Orlando.
UCF’s College of Education and Human Performance and the Morgridge International Reading Center have hosted the annual book festival for the past five years, showcasing different authors and illustrators from around the country.
When authors apply to be part of the festival, they must submit samples of their work for approval. After five festivals, the sample books started to pile up.
“We were running out of room,” said Sandra McCall, outreach coordinator at the Morgridge Center.
The idea to donate the books to the hospital came about when Enrique Puig, director of the Morgridge Center, visited a family member at the hospital and noticed that the reading selection in the visitor waiting area was sparse.
He reached out to the manager of the hospital’s medical library, Nancy Aldrich, and the hospital welcomed the donation with plans to make the books available to its patients and visitors.
“These books will contribute to a positive experience for our patients and their families,” Aldrich said of the books, which come from a variety of genres, including mystery, romance and children’s storybooks.
There is the possibility of expanding the donation to help other hospitals as the festival receives more books each year.
“Our hope is that people enjoy them,” said Puig.
The sixth annual UCF Book Festival will be Saturday, April 18, 2015, at the CFE Arena. Admission and parking will be free.
Authors who would like to participate must submit their titles for consideration by Dec. 31. Additional details are available at http://education.ucf.edu/bookfest/guidelines.cfm.