Christmas came early for students in the Queen Creek Unified School District. All third graders at QCUSD elementary schools received a free dictionary to keep. The dictionaries were purchased and distributed by members of the Queen Creek Kiwanis Club.

All year, Kiwanis Club members in the community have been collecting clothing donations. Bins are set up at each of the eight QCUSD school sites. Club members then turn the donated clothes into cash. Donations go to families in need, and the money raised is used to buy the dictionaries.

The Kiwanis Club is non-profit run by volunteers dedicated to helping children, so the holidays keep club members very busy. During this particular event at Frances Brandon Pickett Elementary School, volunteers went from classroom to classroom pulling a cart of boxes filled with dictionaries. When asked how the dictionary donation makes them feel, one Kiwanis Club member said, “seeing the students’ eyes light up when they receive the dictionaries is a gift in itself”.

Each student gave their dictionary a personal touch by writing their name in the front cover. With an emphasis on ensuring all third graders in Arizona know how to read, you can bet students in the Queen Creek Unified School District will put their dictionaries to good use.