Did you hear the exciting news? Last month, MMAC member Bernie’s Book Bank officially announced its plans to open a processing center in the Greater Milwaukee area!

Founded in 2009, Bernie’s Book Bank uses a sustainable and scalable metropolitan book bank model to provide children in participating schools with eight books per year from birth through sixth grade. Since its launch, the organization has distributed approximately 29 million free quality children’s books. With recent expansions into the Milwaukee region and Florida’s Suncoast community, Bernie’s impact is on the rise.

“Reading is the single most important skill a child needs to succeed in life,” said Jenna Renno, Executive Director of Bernie’s Milwaukee Chapter. “Our goal is to get quality books into the hands of young readers on an ongoing basis and over an extended period of time – especially those kids who might not otherwise have access to books in their homes.”

In March, MMAC interviewed Renno to learn more about the organization’s impact in Milwaukee. With the support of the Chicagoland headquarters, 30 MPS schools received Bernie’s services in 2019. This impact expanded to 60 MPS schools during the 2024-2025 school year.

The new 30,000-square-foot processing center in Glendale would enable Bernie’s to increase its output to Children in the Milwaukee region. The nonprofit aims to reach 40,000 children annually by the end of 2026 and 100,000 children by the end of 2027. Bernie’s focus will begin with a six-county area of Greater Milwaukee, including Milwaukee, Waukesha, Kenosha, Racine, Washington and Ozaukee.

Following the spring 2026 planned opening, Bernie’s anticipates welcoming nearly 100,000 volunteers to the processing center where they will help sticker, sort and bag the books. The organization is also close to meeting its $2M fundraising goal by the end of 2025, placing Bernie’s in a strong position to address the growing issue of children’s literacy in Milwaukee and reach as many children as possible.

“To fulfill this mission, it takes the generosity of donors and volunteers who understand that books unlock amazing opportunities for children – and that benefits our entire community,” said Renno.

View Bernie’s official announcement: https://www.berniesbookbank.org/exciting-news-announcing-our-greater-milwaukee-facility/