Your November BincLinc

Earlier this year a bookseller was diagnosed with a serious medical issue that required surgical treatment. With a lengthy post-operative recovery period required, they knew they would be off work from the bookstore for several weeks. They needed medical treatment and time to heal but did not know how they would be able to pay the medical bills. Added to that was the worry of how this single parent would take care of their family during the recovery period without a paycheck. The bookseller knew that this added stress would make their recovery that much more difficult. Luckily, a social media post shared by fellow retail booksellers informed the bookseller about Binc.

“I instantly felt a sense of peace and relief just knowing there was a foundation out there willing to help.”

Because of our generous donors, Binc was able to take care of the family's household financial needs during the bookseller’s recovery. In addition, Binc was able to help negotiate a settlement of the large medical bills. After Binc helped pay those bills, the bookseller was free from medical debt and had time to recover.

“Without question, I could not have addressed this financial matter without the support and assistance of Binc.”

Thank You,
The Binc Board of Directors and Staff

If you'd like to help booksellers facing life's emergencies donate today.

In This Issue

Donor Spotlight: Tom from the Book Depot💡
Year-End Fundraising Campaign Kicks Off on November 30th
Carla Gray Memorial Scholarship Recipient Chosen
The Survey Results Are In
Ideas to Support Booksellers in Need This Holiday Season
Cool Sideline Alert!
Send E-Greeting Cards That Make A Difference
What We're Reading at Binc

Donor Spotlight: Tom from the Book Depot💡

Tom from the Book Depot paid it forward at this year's NAIBA fall show. Tom is a past Binc grant recipient who shared his Binc story with NAIBA attendees. While Binc's help is in the form of grants not loans and never needs to be paid back, it's to be celebrated when someone is in a position to pay it forward and help the next bookseller who needs a helping hand. We were honored to accept Tom's generous donation and hear what an impact a grant made on his life. [Pictured: Tom and Binc's Director of Development, Kathy Bartson at NAIBA this Fall]

Year-End Fundraising Campaign Kicks Off on November 30th

Penguin Random House Will Double Your Donation!

We need your help to make sure this safety net continues to be here for booksellers in crisis. Your support gives booksellers the ability to breathe again after going through so much. Together, we can make sure booksellers are able to follow their passion, enrich their communities, and strengthen the bookselling industry.

Penguin Random House will be generously matching all donations and will give $1.00 for every social media post on Instagram and Twitter using hashtag #BookstoresAreHolidays, up to $15,000, doubling the power and impact of individual donations from November 30 through December 31, 2019. Donate today and your gift will do twice as much good.

HELP A BOOKSELLER TODAY

Carla Gray Memorial Scholarship Recipient Chosen

The Carla Gray Memorial Scholarship Committee has selected this year’s scholarship winner, Miesha Headen from Loganberry Books! Congrats, Miesha!

The Survey Results Are In

The survey results from earlier this year showed that 1 in 5 booksellers have faced a financial emergency in the last two years, demonstrating that many booksellers in our community are vulnerable during a financial emergency. The survey echoes nationwide findings that 1 in 4 Americans do not have access to $400 to cover an emergency need, making it difficult or impossible to quickly recover from unexpected life events like illness or accident. Problems that start off small (a missed utility bill due to limited income being funneled to a large medical bill) can quickly escalate out of control.

The Foundation is clearly needed more than ever and is having its busiest year assisting booksellers since 2011. The survey results demonstrate there is a definite need in the book industry for an industry-supported emergency financial safety net and that booksellers feel the effects of an emergency or disaster long after the initial emergency has passed. For the full survey results, read more on Binc's blog.

Ideas to Support Booksellers in Need This Holiday Season

We have been receiving many messages recently asking what people can do to help booksellers in need. Bookstores across the country have come up with some awesome ideas, so we're sharing them with you!

→ choose a day like Small Business Saturday to round up 💰for booksellers.
→ host an event to benefit booksellers in need.
→ join as a sustaining donor
→ let your coworkers know about payroll deduction
→ bookstore owners can match their employees' donations.
→ offer holiday gift wrap 🎁 for donations to help booksellers in need.

Cool Sideline Alert!

Our neighbor here in Ann Arbor Fly Paper Products has created a special year-end fundraiser tote bag. 100% of our profits for every tote bag ordered wholesale support the booksellers' safety net.

Send E-Greeting Cards That Make A Difference

Support booksellers this holiday season by sending digital greeting cards with EcoCards.org. Choose and personalize your e-greeting card and email to family and friends. Each digital card emailed represents a donation amount of your choice to Binc with a minimum commitment of $10 to set up an account and $1 donation per card.

What We're Reading at Binc

Simply put, my favorite book that I've read this year. It's so weird and funny and touching and well done. I didn't want to let these characters go. And now I just want more of every single one of them.

—Kate Weiss | Communication Coordinator

“I can’t believe how good this book is. . . . Wholly original. It’s also perfect. . . . Wilson writes with such a light touch. . . . That’s the brilliance of the novel—that it distracts you with these weirdo characters and mesmerizing and funny sentences and then hits you in a way you didn’t see coming.”

— Taffy Brodesser-Akner, The New York Times Book Review

The Book Industry Charitable Foundation’s mission is to strengthen the bookselling community through charitable programs that support employees and their families. The Foundation was imagined and built by booksellers and proudly continues to be their safety net. It is our vision to be a caring community of book people.