Wheaton-Glen Ellyn AAUW sponsors used book sale
When Helen Westlake was a child in the 1930s, she considered herself a short sleeper. Chores came calling early in the morning on her family's farm just south of Elburn.
But instead of going to bed early in the evening to prepare for the early wake-up call, Westlake scurried to her family's bookcase, pulled out a book and brought a flashlight with her under the covers.
Those nights of sneakily escaping into a book fostered a love for reading she maintains to this day.
“There is nothing more beautiful than a well-planned book,” the 83-year-old Wheaton resident said. “A room is so much warmer when you have books in it.”
If that's the case, then the gym on the second floor of the Glen Ellyn Civic Center should be the hottest room in DuPage County this week. Organizers say they have sorted at least 30,000 used books for the Wheaton-Glen Ellyn American Association of University Women's 50th Anniversary Used Book Sale.
The four-day sale raises money for the organization as well as four scholarships for young women at area high schools who want to start their pursuit of a degree at College of DuPage.
The sale will run from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, as well as 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday, and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Civic Center, 535 Duane St., Glen Ellyn.
On Wednesday, admission is $10 for adults, plus a $20 surcharge for patrons who bring scanners to determine the value of a book. Admission is free from Thursday through Sunday with $10 “books by the bag” available on Sunday.
Although she doesn't have as many books as are expected at the sale, Westlake said every room in her Wheaton home, except for the dining room, has books in it. She has been involved with the organization since 1957 and with the book sale since 1968.
A longtime book advocate, Westlake won an Illinois AAUW Agent of Change Award in 1992 for “rallying opposition to textbook censorship.” She wrote several textbooks during her time as a teacher in Hinckley and said her mother's family included several doctors and lawyers.
As a result, her bookcase contained several textbooks she would read. When she became a teacher, she felt textbooks were not as expansive and inclusive as they should be.
“Students in family life classes needed to study family life, parenting, sex education, financial planning,” she said. “A lot of departments were teaching (just) clothing and foods.”
So Westlake wrote her own textbooks.
“You need to teach young people the things that will make them very good citizens,” she said. “I felt the boys and girls should all have an understanding of family life.”
As she prepares to help at the book sale, Westlake reminisced to the days when the books were sorted in her home's basement. That is just another chapter in her work with the AAUW.
“I'm very proud of the AAUW. They do a lot of very wonderful things,” she said. “I particularly like the idea that it goes to scholarships. That's what it is all about. None of us can be too educated.”
If You Go
What: Wheaton-Glen Ellyn American Association of University Women's 50th annual Used Book Sale
When: 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 11-14
Where: Second floor of Glen Ellyn Civic Center, 535 Duane St.
Cost: Free Thursday-Saturday; $10 Wednesday (plus $20 surcharge for book scanners)
Info: Wheaton-glenellynaauw.org