Junior League of Washington Celebrates 15 Years of Partnership with Library of Congress’s National Book Festival

JLW Volunteers Serve as Festival’s Primary Source for Volunteers During the Library of Congress’s Annual Event 

For the 15th consecutive year, the Junior League of Washington (JLW) will provide essential volunteer support for the Library of Congress’s National Book Festival (NBF), taking place Saturday, September 2, at the Washington Convention Center. This year, close to 400 JLW volunteers will donate their time to the event, participating in tasks including staffing book-signing lines, assisting with book sales, and handing out prizes to children alongside librarians from across the country.

“The Junior League of Washington is very happy to celebrate our 15th year providing volunteers to the Library of Congress’s National Book Festival,” said JLW President Aimee Picard Soller. “Our partnership with the Library of Congress for this inspiring annual event has been an incredible extension of our work to promote and improve literacy in the Washington, DC, community. We are proud to join with the Library to impart a love of reading not just to our city but to our entire nation.”

JLW first began supporting the National Book Festival in 2003, steadily growing its support over the years to become the primary provider of volunteers for the festival. Over 15 years, more than 5,800 JLW volunteers have provided 40,000 volunteer hours to the NBF – totaling more than $1.2 million in in-kind support.

For the second time in JLW’s history of volunteering with NBF, the T-shirts worn by JLW volunteers will have the JLW logo on them, highlighting the important role League members play at the festival. For the third year in a row, the JLW logo will also appear on the official festival poster.

“Our nearly 400 volunteers, wearing Junior League hats and smiles throughout the event, are a great representation of our mission to promote voluntarism, develop the potential of women, and improve our community. The opportunity to partner with the Library of Congress to promote literacy in our community is a great honor,” Soller said. “We look forward to once again helping make this year’s festival a success.”

Learn more about this year’s National Book Festival here.