Book fair chance to grab bargain
An annual fair is giving book, music and jigsaw lovers the chance to add to their collections.
Jill Williams, Hãwera Genealogy Group convener, says the book fair is coming up to its ninth year.
“The book fair is our group’s annual fundraiser. The money raised goes towards resources so we can continue to help families with their research.”
In previous years, the funds raised have gone towards digitising old newspapers, and other projects which benefit both the group and the community. She says preserving history is important.
“It’s great for future generations to be able to see what the past was like and find out about their family history.”
Jill says the group is always focused on helping families research their history, running a four-week programme in August.
“August is family history month so with the help of the Hãwera Library Plus, we ran four sessions to help people access ancestry.com.”
With the funds raised at the book fair, she says the group can continue to support the community in their research projects.
She says the group collects books throughout the year and sorts them into categories to make it easier for shoppers to find the book, puzzle, CD, or DVD they want.
“We have a large collection this year of fiction, cooking, gardening, non-fiction, children’s books, DVDs, CDs and jigsaw puzzles.”
Keeping the costs cheap is also important, she says.
“A lot of people have been struggling so we’ve set the prices quite low. Children’s books will be 50c, adult books will be $2 and CDs and DVDs will be around $1. That way people can come and grab a bargain and also support a local group.”
In previous years they’ve had nearly 100,000 books and Jill expects a similar number at this year’s fair.