Thanks to local couple there are books for all at Triton Book Fair

The Triton Elementary School library was buzzing with activity last week as classes took turns coming in to choose books at the annual Scholastic Book Fair.

A variety of books on all sorts of topics of interest to elementary students were on display and available for purchase from Scholastic Book Clubs.

As has been the case for several years each student in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade had the opportunity to select a book valued at up to $7 at no cost thanks to the generosity of a local couple. The students also had the option to purchase additional books.

For three years Dan and Sue Welsh have been making it possible for the youngsters to get a book at no cost.

Sue Welsh said that she has volunteered at Triton for 26 years and that “reading is my thing.” For a number of those years she volunteered in one classroom and each year she and her husband provided funds for each student in the class to get a book.

“We decided to take the next step,” she said, expanding the program to all elementary students.

“Both my husband and I love to read and our three daughters love to read,” she explained. “Reading is so important, especially for children.”

She said she knows that a lot of children at Triton do not have many books at home, yet it is so important that they have them available.

She said reading is vital for learning all other subjects, even math.

Throughout her years as a volunteer, she said, it’s always been about reading.

“In all the years I volunteered I listened to children read.”

Her own three daughters are Triton graduates and avid readers. One of her daughters, Michelle Welsh, is a teacher at Triton Elementary and she continues to volunteer in her classroom. The Welsh’s also have a grandson in first grade at Triton and a granddaughter in preschool.

Involvement in the schools and community has always been a part of their lives, she said, and education and Triton have are an important to them. Husband Dan served on the Triton School Board for 13 or 14 years and Sue served nine years on the Dodge Center Library Board.