Today we’d like to introduce you to Sally McArthur.
Hi Sally, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was working as a Guardian ad Litem attorney, representing children who had been removed from their homes due to abuse, abandonment or neglect, when I visited a 3 year old child to check on her safety. As a way to develop a relationship with the child, I asked if she wanted to read a book. She was very excited and said that she did. I told her to go get a book and we would read it together. She ran to her room and came back with an empty CD case – the kind with sleeves for multiple CDs. It was my turn to be surprised. She started turning the empty sleeves and made up a story on the spot! I vowed to return with books the next time I visited, and I continued to bring books with me when I visited her at home, and when I noticed that her preschool did not have many books, I came back with a big box for them as well.
As I continued to visit with children, I was saddened by the lack of access to books wherever they were living – with a relative, non-offending parent, or in a foster or group home. I had heard of a charity (First Book) that gave books to non-profit organizations that worked with children who lived in poverty. They charged only a shipping an handling fee. I checked with my director, and asked if we could give these books to our clients. She wanted to do it, but there was not much room or any money for such a program. I asked if our nonprofit would sponsor this if I could raise the funds and use my office for the books, and that is what we did.
The program was very successful, and we gave away tens of thousands of books over the next 8 years, until I left the organization.
As I was figuring out what I was going to do after retirement, the pandemic hit, and I saw so many children who needed books and educational materials at home as their parents struggled with schooling at home. So I started sourcing and giving out books through community partners. This grew into Facilitating Learning for Youth, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
We distribute books through our community partners, Little Free Libraries, Back to School and Literacy Fairs, and our largest distribution is through Title I school teachers who pick up books for their students at our office. They can take up to 2 new books per student for the child to own and have at home. They can also pick up as many used donated books as they wish to send home, or to use in their classroom libraries. In 2025, teachers picked up 19,467 books from our office.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has been a lot of work, and there are always challenges. We have no paid staff, so that limits the amount of time that we have workers. But we always have volunteers willing to help, so if we get in the weeds, we just put out a call for help. We have tinkered with different distribution methods to get the books into the hands of children who need them. What we have here is a mixture, but we rely heavily on teachers from Title I schools to get the books out to their students. In fact, teachers who pick up books are some of our most dedicated volunteers, but there are many others as well. We have two Bonner leadership interns from Rollins College who work during the school year. In October I had a knee replacement surgery, and was out for about 2 months. They ran the program, manned the teacher pick up days, and even put on a fundraiser while I was out. Right now we are looking for a larger location. We have had to turn down some large book donations as we just don’t have room for them. Since we are a 501(c)(3), property owners can donate space for a tax write off for the value of a lease, or we could accept property for the value of the property as a donation. So, this is a challenge created by the success of the program.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a retired attorney. When you retire, you have to decide what to do with your life. Do you want to travel, sit at home and do puzzles and read books, go out to movies and plays, visit with friends, or are you just not done yet with trying to make a difference in the world? So, gear up or gear down?
I decided that the best thing that I had ever done in my life was to start a program that gave books to kids in dependency. When I retired, I wanted to do that for all kids living in poverty. There is a a 20 year worldwide study done by the University of Nevada at Reno which concludes that there are only two things environmentally that affect educational outcomes in children everywhere. One is the educational level of the parents and the other is the number of books in the home. I can’t do anything about the parents’ education, but I can provide books for the children.
So, I started a nonprofit to give books to kids who live in poverty, because those are the kids who do not have books at home. In fact, 61% of children in low income homes have no books in the home, and another 20% have only one or two books in the home. The statistic encompasses all books, not just books for kids. As far as age appropriate books go, the statistic is that in low-income areas, there is one age appropriate book in the home for every 300 children, while middle to high income areas have 13 age appropriate books per child.
Children who live in poverty start off behind in school and continue to lag behind because they do not have the same tools to learn as their more affluent peers. Giving books to kids may not close the gap, but it will be narrower.
I want you to know that I also read, do puzzles, visit with friends, etc. – but what sets me apart is that I have a passion to help children rise above expectations, and I did something about it that I think helps.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I could never have done this alone. My supporters have come from many places. I could not even have gotten started without the support of my husband, Randy Noles, and my sons Cody and Luke. First Congregational Church of Winter Park has given us space to run the organization and store books. Their Spirit Keepers men’s group built and painted Little Free Libraries to put in book deserts. Harold Ward has been a wonderful supporter and through the Warren and Augusta Hume Foundation we have been able to secure a grant that helped us purchase books, bookcases and other necessities to get started and continue to grow. My son, Cody Noles, spent the first few years helping me to get everything set up and being my transport and book hauling director. Debbie Freeland set up the Teacher Free Book Pickup Days, the most successful form of distribution that we have. Healthy Start works with us to take books for babies to new moms through their home visitor program. Our teachers take their personal time to come to downtown Winter Park to pick up books for their students from as far away as Leesburg, Kissimmee, Deltona, and Midway, in addition to the large contingent from Orange County. Cynthia Wood has put together a brain trust of nonprofit experts to help us prioritize and grow in the best way possible. First United Methodist Church Winter Park has donated money, and done book donation drives, Good Shepherd Catholic School has donated huge amounts of books from their media center and classrooms as the have to make room for new books. An amazing amount of books was collected by Avalon Elementary School students. AdventHealth University has sent volunteers to build bookcases, paint and organize our room. Rollins College has given us our amazing Bonner interns. UCF has given us wonderful training in nonprofit management and how to scale up, and has also set us up through their classes with a design team and a grant writer. The Children’s Cabinet of Orange County has given me a network of child advocates who are invaluable. Erica Moulder, artist extraordinaire, has painted two cabinets that have to be seen to believe. I am going to stop here, but I have so many people to thank, that it is impossible to name them all.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://flyintoabook.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/flyinc501/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FLYIntoABook
