Words into action

At 9-years-old, Sabel Witmer is a library founder, or at least a used-bookstore founder. The Huffaker Elementary School fourth-grader has been collecting books from her schoolmates for her Library to Save the Manatees. “We were doing reports in school, and I got the manatees, and I just learned a lot about them,” says Witmer. “I just thought it was sad that they were endangered just because they get hit by boat propellers.”

All proceeds from the library—which is located in her outdoor playhouse—go to the Save the Manatees foundation. “They’re trying to raise money to give veterinary help to save the manatees and also for shelter for the manatees,” says Witmer.

About 130 books have been donated so far. Anyone interested in donating books can email her at sabel@petfoliomagazine.com, her address at PetFolio magazine, where she also writes a children’s column called “Ask Sabel.”