SB publisher raises money for books
“Why Am I / Por Que Soy” is among the books being given to children in a campaign by Santa Barbara-based Seven Seas Press.
Seven Seas Press, a Santa Barbara nonprofit publisher, is partnering with the national organization, Head Start, for its latest fundraising effort to provide books to local preschool children as they and their families navigate lack of access to early childhood learning opportunities due to COVID-19.
“We are excited to announce our newest campaign aimed at gifting as many books as possible to children, many with parents who are working while navigating distance learning,” said Erika Romer, executive director at Seven Seas Press.
Among them is “Why Am I / Por Qué Soy,” authored by Colleen McCarthy-Evans and illustrated by Sarah Dietz.
“This book is perfect for these times we are experiencing. It is a playful
and a sweet journey of much-needed joy. It is a rhyming poem which is an invitation for little ones and adults alike to explore questions around why we are here. Now more than ever as children learn from home, books are an important and simple way to contribute to their well being,” said Ms. Romer.
Funding from an IndieGoGo campaign will provide books to partner organizations, Head Start, and its sister organization, Storyteller Children’s Centers in Santa Barbara.
“It is important to us to provide books that offer fresh, supportive and relevant content which explore ways to navigate the world around us in a connected way. We offer all of our books in bilingual format in support of all of our bilingual Santa Barbara families,” added Ms. Romer.
This latest campaign follows two others that raised over $10,000 for more than 600 books locally and beyond, including organizations that support families in border facilities, hurricane, fire, and mudslide relief, and refugee camps in Australia and Greece.
Seven Seas Press continues its mission to seek out partnerships with organizations that offer direct services to children in need. This past summer’s campaign supported by individual donations, funding from American Riviera Bank and an in-kind donation by Boone Printing, enabled the publisher to send 173 English and bilingual books to 4- to 8-year-olds enrolled in Girls Inc. programs.
Last month, 50 books were distributed by Artesania para la Familia in Carpinteria, an organization that works directly with underserved families by identifying needs and facilitating distribution of donations.
“As we continue to grow, Seven Seas Press invites greater community support to help us expand the scope and reach of our work. We will be focusing on developing relationships with grant-giving organizations, marketing and expanding the base of collaborating talent to reflect diversity in our community,” said Ms. Romer.
FYI
For more information about Seven Seas Press, contact Erika Romer at 805-886-6548 or sevenseaspress@gmail.com. To support the
“Why Am I” fundraiser, visit https://igg.me/at/whyami.
email: mmcmahon@newspress.com
