MARCH 28 • 2024 | 15 J N continued on page 16 Special Days at Bookstock (bookstockmi.org) PRE-SALE Bookstock kicks off with a special Pre-Sale on Sunday, April 7, at 8:15 a.m. featuring a performance by the Ukaladies and the Bookstock parade of vol- unteers. Admission is $25 for the Pre-Sale only, which ends at 11 a.m., and offers first choice of Bookstock’s huge array of used books and media. MONDAY-FRIDAY BARGAIN DAYS Shoppers can bring a Bookstock bag from a pre- vious year to receive 20 percent off their entire pur- chase. (This excludes other promotions and is limited to one Bookstock bag dis- count per customer.) TEACHER APPRECIATION DAY Teachers with professional identification will receive a 50% discount from 2 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday April 9, and Wednesday, April 10. BOOKSTOCK B.E.S.T. AWARD PRESENTATION On April 9, awards will be presented to fourth grade students from the Detroit Public Schools Community District for their winning essays about their favorite book characters. POCKET PAPERBACK PALOOZA AND GRAND FINALE Shoppers can buy a dozen pocket paperbacks for $10 on Saturday, April 13. All books will be sold for 50% off on Sunday, April 14. PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS PROVIDE VOLUNTEERS One of the major changes over the years has been the addition of partner nonprofit organiza- tions that provide volunteers for Bookstock — 37 organiza- tions since 2005. These local nonprofits, such as the National Council of Jewish Women, all provide educational or literacy programs in the community. When their members volunteer for a Bookstock shift — wheth- er sorting books or working at the sale — their hours are tab- ulated and a proportional share goes back to their organization. Ruth Beitner is Bookstock’s vol- unteer coordinator. This year, more than 600 volunteers are expected to provide 6,284 volunteer hours, compared to 2,927 in 2005, the first year that volunteer records were kept. Last year, 28 orga- nizations received funds from Bookstock. Collecting and sorting donat- ed books and media and then setting everything up at Laurel Park Place is a massive task. The three Depot co-chairs — Carol Dmitruk, Sharon Resnick and Jane Steinger — each have more than 10 years of volunteer experience with Bookstock and have refined the process over the years. The Depot or collec- tion point is Congregation Beth Ahm, and the cut-off for dona- tions was the week of March 6. Books and other donated items are sorted into 50 categories and boxed as they arrive at Beth Ahm. A moving company takes more than 600 cartons of items to the Laurel Place Office Building, where they are stored at no charge through Schostak Brothers, the building owners. On the Thursday before the sale, everything is moved to Laurel Park Place for set-up. Chairs and tables are provided by Laurel Park Place’s owner, CBL Properties. Bookstock provides tablecloths, signs, can- vas bags for purchases, aprons for volunteers, maps, mugs and pens used during the sale. BOOKS STILL HAVE APPEAL The most popular categories are mysteries, science fiction, children’s books, art books and records. There are also special selections — old and rare books and book sets which appeal to collectors and are priced below comparable items online. Bookstock adheres to a phi- Members of the Motor City Pipes and Drums kick off Bookstock’s 2023 Grand Opening. JEFF AISEN A parade of volunteers kick offs Bookstock’s 2019 Grand Opening. JEFF AISEN