In every school, the Rainbow Reading Gardens team were welcomed as if they were celebrities. When we arrived at the Nggorang primary school, the students were all lined from the entrance gate to the school. As we walked into the school, the students clapped and whistled as we passed them by.

1

The principal of the school, Yakobus Sutarto, expressed his joy of having the Rainbow Reading Gardens library in the school many times during his speech. He was proud to have his school selected as one of the libraries that would benefit from the program. The school hosts about 274 students and about 1400 books have been distributed to the library.

3

In her speech, Rainbow Reading Gardens founder, Nila Tanzil, expressed her gratitude to the parents and teachers who have supported the library’s establishment. She also said that she will continue to support the children of Flores and supply them with great quality books.

2

Once the ribbon cutting ceremony was over, parents and students stormed into the library. They quickly picked up the books and read them outloud to one another. After miss Selvi, the school librarian announced that children would be able to borrow books the next day, they rejoiced at once.

4

The opening ceremony was closed with a traditional Bajawa dance, called Jai. The students cheered as the Rainbow Reading Gardens team joined in the dance. It was an experience we would never forget. 🙂

5