AAUW Johnstown chapter raises scholarship money through books

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. (WTAJ) — The American Association for University Women hands out four scholarships annually to women pursuing post-secondary education.

Originally, they would award the scholarships in full, but discovered that method was not financially stable. Now, a big portion comes from a book sale.

“It’s our largest fundraiser. We give four scholarships every year,” Georgia Yeager, one of the book sale co-chairs of the Johnstown Chapter of University Women, said. “We count on this book sale to raise all of the funds that we need for those scholarships.”

The 66th annual book sale took place in the Galleria Mall off Route 219. The sale featured around 14,000 books displayed on rows of tables, ranging over a dozen different genres to fund scholarships. Right now, the Johnstown chapter has scholarships for the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown and Penn Highlands Community College.

The supply of books came from donations across the area. Offices allowed the group to set up donation boxes to collect these books.

“We help young women and we promote reading,” Yeager said.

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Even with the large supply of books, there is always a worry that the sale will not do well. If the scholarships are not fully funded, a backup plan has been put in place to make sure women can pursue college degrees or join the labor force through vocational institutions.

“It’s important that we have a really good book sale so that we can continue with the scholarships,” Yeager said. “We are also putting money into the community foundation for the Alleghenies, hoping to eventually have a scholarship that sustains itself.”

The book sales continues through the week, ending on Saturday at 4 p.m.

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