As you walk through the grocery stores or other shopping centers, you’re bound to see the back-to-school displays in full force. Thankfully, in Delaware County, we have such a giving community that, regardless of your situation in life, all students in the county have the opportunity to be equipped with everything they need to return to school – backpacks and all.

Supplies for Scholars is an annual program that the United Way of Delaware County has held for local students since 2013. The in-person events invite students of all ages, kindergarteners to seniors, to stop by an advertised location and receive everything on their school supply list. In past years, local agencies and businesses have also been on site to offer free haircuts, vision and dental screenings, and more to make sure that your student is in tip-top shape and health before the first day.

This year’s in-person shopping events have their big kick-off this Thursday, July 27, from 4-6 p.m. and Friday, July 28 from 9-11 a.m. at the Willis Education Center, located at 74 W. William St. in Delaware. If your student isn’t available this week, the mobile distribution events will continue on Wednesday, Aug. 2, from 12-2 p.m. at Woodward Elementary; Friday, Aug. 4, from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Olentangy Administrative Offices; and Saturday, Aug. 5, from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Community Library in Sunbury.

Since launching in 2013, Supplies For Scholars has served over 14,000 Delaware County students. Walk-ups are welcome and there are no income requirements.

The Delaware County District Library is always happy to partner with our friends at the United Way of Delaware County for the Willis Education Center shopping event. It’s the perfect opportunity to sign up for a library card, learn about the free learning resources provided by the library, or simply relax after a long day of shopping in our portable “Book Nook” – equipped with beanbag chairs and library books.

One of the library’s favorite resources to promote at back-to-school events includes a free subscription for early learners to ABCmouse. Designed by experts in early childhood education, the ABCmouse.com curriculum encompasses reading, math, science, social studies, art and music. With your DCDL card, the app is free and easy to install on any device.

Additionally, students will be thanking you when they discover Brainfuse HelpNow. Brainfuse is a unique virtual tutoring and studying suite designed to help learners of all ages. Patrons access real-time assistance through the intuitive Brainfuse online classroom daily between 2 and 11 p.m. Tutors are trained to help users master a problem’s underlying academic concept. Services can also be accessed in Spanish. Discover all that the Library has to offer your learner at www.delawarelibrary.org/student.

Memoirs have been my reading taste lately. If you’re looking for a new biography or memoir, try one of these, new to our shelves this month.

• “The Talk” by Darrin Bell. At age six, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Darrin Bell had a terrifying encounter with a police officer while playing with a friend’s water gun, prompting a conversation with his mother about racism. While recalling the racist experiences he has dealt with throughout his life, Bell contemplates whether or not his own young son is ready for “the talk.” Bell’s debut graphic memoir features expressive artwork in alternating blue and sepia hues (the latter for flashbacks).

• “Never Give Up: A Prairie Family’s Story” by Tom Brokaw. Emmy Award-winning broadcast journalist Tom Brokaw pens a moving tribute to his working-class parents, Red and Jean. Brokaw includes heartfelt reflections on how his family navigated the challenges of the Great Depression and World War II in small-town South Dakota. The title of this memoir was inspired by Red’s life philosophy.

• “The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession” by Michael Finkel. Meet prolific French art thief Stéphane Breitwieser, who conducted more than 200 heists throughout Europe over an eight-year period, stealing an estimated $1 to $2 billion worth of objects. Author Michael Finkel expands upon his 2019 GQ article about Breitwieser in this suspenseful blend of biography and true crime. Readers of the physical book will enjoy the featured maps and color photographs of some of the stolen artwork.

• “My Friend Anne Frank: The Inspiring and Heartbreaking True Story of Best Friends Torn Apart and Reunited Against All Odds” by Hannah Pick-Goslar. Bergen-Belsen survivor Hannah Pick-Goslar delivers a heart-wrenching and moving account of her friendship with Anne Frank. Try this book for a vivid account of the Holocaust that reveals another perspective on Anne Frank’s legacy.

• “When the World Didn’t End” by Guinevere Turner. Actor/director/screenwriter Guinevere Turner shares her abusive upbringing in the Lyman Family doomsday cult. Featuring reflections drawn from diaries Turner kept in her youth like these: “There have been points in my life when keeping a record of what was happening to me felt like the only power I had.” For fans of affecting memoirs of surviving unconventional childhoods, like Tara Westover’s “Educated.”

If you have a question that you would like to see answered in this column, mail it to Nicole Fowles, Delaware County District Library, 84 E. Winter St., Delaware, OH 43015, or call us at 740-362-3861. You can also email your questions by visiting the library’s web site at www.delawarelibrary.org or directly to Nicole at [email protected]. No matter how you contact us, we’re always glad you asked!