Children’s Book Festival Boasts Big Talent For Spring 2017

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Johnstown, PA (Jan. 20, 2017) – We’ll READ, ROCK & ROLL at the 9^th Annual Children’s Book Festival of Johnstown. Victoria Jamieson, author/illustrator of the Newberry Honor Award and New York Times bestseller Roller Girl, will headline the festival. Her graphic novel is an inspiring story of friendship and survival through determination and girl power!

The Children’s Book Festival will be held April 1 & 2, 2017 at BOTTLE WORKS in Johnstown.Jamieson will deliver presentations and sign booksthroughout the weekend. She will also be a keynote speaker for the festival’s Saturday Night Author Talk. The panel discussion will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 1, and is designed to provide published and aspiring authors and illustrators of children’s literature valuable information and tips for finding their own success in the publishing industry.

“Last year, the Book Festival was a huge hit with the community, spotlighting the importance of reading to over 3,470 children and their families,” said Ingrid Kloss, director of development at The Learning Lamp. “This year, we knew we had to continue recruiting top caliber authors to headline the festival and Jamieson does not disappoint.”

Now in its ninth year, the Children’s Book Festival of Johnstown aims to provide families of children in grades PreK – 6 in Western Pennsylvania with a FREE, interactive and engaging literary experience that inspires kids to read, encourages parents to read to their children and gives them access to new and used books to build home libraries of their own. And every child who comes to the Book Festival receives a free book from First Book.

In addition to Jamieson’s presentation, the festival will feature writing and illustrating workshops for kids, live entertainment, storytellers, themed arts and crafts and a giant new and used book sale. The event also hosts an annual bookmark contest. Winners of each age bracket receive a basket full of age-appropriate books.

The Learning Lamp is preparing to kick off its annual fundraising campaign to help bring renowned authors and illustrators such as Victoria Jamieson to Johnstown at no cost to children and families! Leading the way is a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The Children’s Book Festival was among 134 projects nationwide funded through the NEA’s Challenge America Grant Program. In 2017, the NEA awarded $1.34 million to small and mid-sized organizations for projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations—people whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability. The Children’s Book Festival of Johnstown helps to connect children and families of all incomes with award-winning authors and illustrators that inspire kids in Western Pennsylvania to read and learn.

The Learning Lamp is also seeking corporate sponsors to partner with us in 2017. Additionally, the festival wouldn’t be possible without the help of countless volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Festival Coordinator Ingrid Kloss at ikloss@thelearninglamp.org. For more information about the 9th Annual Children’s Book Festival of Johnstown, visit our website, thelearninglamp.org or visit us on Facebook at facebook.com/CBFJohnstown/.

The Learning Lamp is a nonprofit organization with a mission to engage all children in the support they need to succeed. We deliver high quality programs that are affordable and accessible to families of all income levels. The Learning Lamp served 30,711 children from 57 school districts and 53 non-public and private schools and other organizations in 17 Pennsylvania counties and one county in Maryland in 2015. 

Our programs include: one-to-one tutoring; before/after school programs; portable classrooms aimed at building math and science skills; alternative education programs for at-risk students; evidence-based prevention programs; online learning and credit recovery; SAT preparation; educationally-focused child care; literacy-based preschool programs; and grant writing and project consulting for schools.