Dear Family, Friends and Supporters,

  We have had a very busy 10 days or so as we made last minute preparations to get the BiblioBus on the road so to speak.  We wanted to have the BiblioBus ready before December, so we targeted 30 November for Inauguration, and made it happen.  The photos can tell the whole story, but here are the highlights.

  On Sunday, 30 Nov 08, we had Inauguration Day from 1-3 in the beautiful (and shady) area behind the church in the center of the towns.  We had a storyteller, coloring books and coloring areas for the kids, book readers for kids, food, and bus tours.  For the over 250 people that passed through the festivities in 2 hours, it was a big hit.  We got over 50 families registered for library cards that day, and everyone enjoyed it.

  We started off with lots of Thank Yous to supporters here and around the world, then had the BiblioBus blessed as our way of thanking God for all the gifts bestowed on our family to make this dream a reality for the people of Loma and the surrounding communties. Then it was down to the business of having fun and promoting reading. Our Cuenta Cuentos (StoryTeller) was an instant hit, bringing books to life for the audience that ranged from toddlers to "the young at heart" group pushing their 80s and 90s...
  With the kids creating their own books and coloring them, and others having stories read to them, the interest in books swelled.  The real joy to me was seeing endless rows of kids, youth and adults lining the BiblioBus walls, shelves and floors, wherever they could find room and just enjoying books. That is why we came!!!
  Our first day, Tuesday, was also a huge hit as we parked near the primary school and the town's Tuesday Tianguis (Flea Market), and we had throngs of customers all day. We emptied our shelves of almost half our 400+ books to readers of all ages!  We also have signed up over 100 families in just 3 days as BiblioBus Associates (Library card holders and part owners of their BiblioBus).  Again, our BiblioBus was full the entire 6 hours or so that we were open with lots of eager readers!
  This week each day is also full of orientation tours at the 2 kindergarten sessions and 2 primary school sessions...hopefully we can still have books to show them!  But hey, the shelves are pretty too! If you find any hidden sources for Spanish Books out there, please let us know, as we are on the hunt again!

  Thank you again to all our supporters and friends!  Because of you, our Christmas gift came early this year with all the Blessings we could ever have hoped for, and all found in the faces of those children, youth and adults seeing new worlds, ideas and adventures in the books!