Gary Padak, a member of the Rotary Club of Jamestown, displays cases of some of the 800 books that club members collected and donated during their recent book drive. The books were sorted and packed for donation to the Jamestown Community Learning Council, the James Prendergast Library, the Lakewood Memorial Library and for shipment to the Cambodian Academy at Mongol Burei in Tibet, with whom the local club has an existing relationship.
 
In 1985, Rotary declared basic literacy to be a pre-condition to the development of peace. Through this continual organizational emphasis, more than half the world’s 34,000 Rotary clubs address a full scope of literacy challenges for primary, vocational, and adult learners as well as teacher training.
 
Many Rotary club members worldwide promote literacy projects that can be replicated easily, thereby increasing the scope of their impact to inspire, guide and support communities toward alleviating mass illiteracy in developing countries.