Donations Accepted March 9-21, 2026
Tenikka’s Books for Kids collects new and like new books for local children from birth to 18 years old. This includes everything from picture books for babies, books for new readers, and chapter books for teens. Books collected during this annual book drive are given to kids who participate in Jacksonville Public Library’s Summer Reading Program at no cost to children or their families.
Tenikka’s Books for Kids serves three key purposes:
- Encouraging children to read, thus preventing the “summer slide” where kids lose two to three months of what they learned in school.
- Providing free books for children to build their own libraries at home.
- Encouraging adults to read to and with the children in their lives.
Ways to Donate
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Drop off books in #TB4K marked drop boxes at any Jacksonville Public Library or with participating Family Focus partners including:
- First Florida Credit Union locations
- First Coast YMCA branches and
- Ackerman Cancer Center, 10881 San Jose Blvd., Jacksonville
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SHOP LOCAL AND DONATE at these participating local bookstores:
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Purchase in-store or online from San Marco Books and More - 1971 San Marco Blvd., Jacksonville 32207
- Note: They will be donating a portion of the proceeds to the Library Foundation
- Shop and donate in-store at The BookMark - 220 First St., Neptune Beach, 32266
- Shop and donate in-store at Happy Medium Books Café - 2724 Park St., Jacksonville, 32205
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Purchase in-store or online from San Marco Books and More - 1971 San Marco Blvd., Jacksonville 32207
- Order books online from a librarian-curated TB4K Amazon Wish List.
- Make a monetary donation to the Tenikka’s Books for Kids Fund through our mutual nonprofit partner, Library Foundation of Jacksonville. These funds are used to purchase books to be given out during Summer Reading Program.
"Thank you for helping us give the gift of reading to local children and please make time to read with the children in your life!" - Tenikka Hughes, Action News Jax Anchor
Since it launched in 2018, Tenikka's Books for Kids has put nearly 40,000 books in the hands of local children. An advocate for youth literacy and education, Tenikka Hughes regularly reads to children at area libraries, schools, daycares and community centers. She has won several state-level service awards from organizations such as the Florida Literacy Coalition and Florida chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma International Society for Key Women Educators.
