Barbara Scharfenberg

Charity Angels...Celebrating Those Who Give of Themselves

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By Judith Lawrenson

Photography by Bill Lawrenson

Little things mean a lot. For instance, how can something as small as a dollar bill and a gently used book change hundreds of lives? Read on to find out!

For several years, a dedicated team of volunteers from First Presbyterian Church on Hilton Head Island (FPC) has been involved in a program called “A Book and a Buck”. Many people have participated and given their time and talents to make this project a huge success. Barbara Scharfenberg, chairman of the Local Outreach Committee at FPC has been a part of this program almost since the beginning. The original idea came from a movie, believe it or not!

Pink: What is “A Book and a Buck?”

Barbara: The program started by asking people to bring in a new or gently used book and to put a dollar bill inside. The books were to go to schools in Jasper County and the money was to be used to buy more books and school supplies.

Pink: How did the program start and how has it grown?

Barbara: Some ideas are meant to happen and I think this was one of them. Several years ago, our Wednesday evening church group had a speaker and watched a movie called The Corridor of Shame. The movie dealt with the poverty, lack of educational opportunities and poor school conditions in several neighboring and nearby South Carolina counties. A group of members, including me, were so affected by the movie and speaker, they decided to explore how they could make a difference. We met with Jasper County School Superintendent Vashti Washington to discern needs and to see if there was a fit with what our volunteers could do. It may seem hard to believe, but we have since placed books in school libraries and classrooms in Jasper, Hampton and Allendale counties—well over 16,000 books. Also, teachers use donated books as prizes for their students. The program started in the elementary schools, but has expanded to include giving books to middle and high school classrooms and libraries, too.

Pink: Do all of the books have a dollar in them?

Barbara: No, but that is not really important when you think about how many books some people bring. There is one couple, Pat and Jim Carr from Pennsylvania, who regularly bring us up to 12 cases of books at a time. They collect from friends, libraries, relatives and on and on. Talk about dedication to a cause!

Pink: I understand this project has led to other ways to reach at risk students. Please explain.

Barbara: We now have an additional program called Book Buddies. We write letters once a month to our buddy and we buy them a book of their choice. The children write back to us and this sets up a regular correspondence. We correspond for a whole school year. It is a very personal contact. We have about 150 people involved in this project. It is a challenge, but we make sure that every child in a classroom has a buddy. Some of our “buddies” may write to several children at a time. They are a very dedicated group.  We also aid in Back Pack Buddies efforts. We have been doing this for quite a while, too. People like Blaine Lotz and Glen Neff have been a part of all of this almost from the start. So many wonderful people have put out their hand to be involved with these children.

Pink: What is your background?

Barbara: I am a school teacher. I taught in Ridgeland Middle School for a while, then I taught in Hardeeville for 14 years. I sometimes share an experience that really brought the need for books into very sharp focus for me. We were cleaning up a library in an elementary school in Hardeeville a few years back and found several books published in 1926 and they were stamped “Hardeeville Colored School.” This is obviously a very powerful motivator, don’t you think?

Pink: That is a huge motivator. In fact, I am sure many our readers would love to know how they can help. Is that possible?

Barbara: It is not only possible but very easy, too! We are starting another “A Buck and a Book” drive this month. If you would like to be a part of this outreach, simply bring a gently used or new book to the office at First Presbyterian Church on Hilton Head by mile marker five on William Hilton Parkway. You can put a dollar bill in the book, too. That is not necessary, but very much appreciated. By the way, when I say new or gently used, I mean that you should think about the kind of book you would like to put in the hands of a child. You need not be a member of FPC, of course.  Funny, isn’t it? It is so very simple to do such a huge thing.

Pink: It is amazing that truly life-changing things are being done here in the Lowcountry to make a huge difference. Be a part of this and, you too, will be a Charity Angel!

First Presbyterian Church on HHI
“We are all so very grateful for this unbelievable outreach. The addition of these resources in school libraries, classrooms, and most important of all, in the hands of children, has had a tremendous impact. As part of this vision, we have also provided tutoring, Back Pack Buddies help and a very special one-on-one ministry called Book Buddies. Our ongoing dream is to purchase a van to enable us to take small teams of volunteers and, of course, books, into underserved areas to help us continue this mission began by Barbara and so many others.”
        -Dr. Doug Fletcher, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church Hilton Head Island


The need for money to purchase a 10-person van to transport books and reading teams, among other things, out to these rural counties is real. Currently, volunteers are filling their trunks and juggling carpool times. Yet another opportunity for YOU to be a Charity Angel!