News & Media

I'm going to read them all" Grade schoolers get excited about book donation during Bernie's Book Bank's crosstown charity walk. The volunteers were midway through their 20-mile “Walk As One Chicago” fundraiser, marching from Guaranteed Rate Field to Wrigley Field and...

The first-ever BookaPalooza was a huge success! Spawning from last year's Storybook Festival, Bernie’s Book Bank wanted to bring a similar event directly to the communities served. The event took place on the south side of Chicago in Cornell Sq. Park on Saturday, July...

On October 13th Bernie's Book Bank reached a major milestone, the distribution of our 20 MILLIONTH free book since 2009! To celebrate this achievement Darrin Utynek, CEO of Bernie's Book Bank, led an assembly-style book delivery event at St. Ann School in partnership...

2020 was a year like no other. Despite pandemic challenges, Bernie's Book Bank remained laser focused on providing free quality books for under-served children. Our 2020 Impact Report shares the highlights of the innovative ways we collected books, distributed books,...

Bernie's Book Bank is proud to host its first ever virtual Pop-Up Shop! For the month of March only the entire line of Bernie's Book Bank hoodies are on sale. Choose from four styles (see gallery below for more pictures): RE*D Chicago Flag Blue Hoodie Gray Slouch Neck...

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to negatively impact lives, your support enables us to positively impact the lives of local under-served children. The map below illustrates how we continue to increase book ownership, as we have distributed 112,000 free...

Dear Bernie's Book Bank Supporter,First and foremost, THANK YOU! to all who have donated to the "Change Their Story" campaign. Your dollars are hard at work changing the story for under-served children across Chicagoland.In the two weeks since we launched...

Can you imagine being a child during this uncertain time who cannot attend school and has no books at home to read? As a father, and husband to a teacher, it is difficult to fathom. Nevertheless, I know this is the reality for so many children in our...

The children we serve have been disproportionately affected due to school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic. Books at home are needed more than ever, especially in the absence of e-learning in many low-income communities. Access to reading materials...

The snowy Chicagoland weather didn’t stop volunteers from making the trek to Bernie’s Book Bank on January 24 and 25 for Volunteer-A-Thon. Volunteers helped to sort, sticker and pack books for local under-served children. To keep energy high over the...

Ricobene’s of Chicago ranks high in our list of the best lunches available in the Chicagoland area. I had heard rumblings of an amazing sandwich in my infancy as a book banker, but nothing could have prepared me for what USA Today calls “The Best Sandwich...

The Bernie’s Book Bank drive team takes their fried chicken and chicken wings very seriously. So, when we’re in Antioch and are craving the best wings around, we head over to Wings Etc.* Aside from the fact that they have phenomenal wings, both boneless...

Halsted Street Deli* in Vernon Hills utilizes several core principles to ensure customer satisfaction. They offer a wide variety of hefty sandwiches along with varied healthy options, coffee and desserts. The deli serves a selection of quality meats,...

Zacatacos* of Chicago is one of many taco joints throughout the city, but for the drive team they are a cut above the rest. Maybe it’s because they only use USDA choice inner skirt for their famous steak tacos, or maybe it’s their unbeatable El Pastor...

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit* in Gurnee is a mouthwatering experience the Bernie’s Book Bank team can’t pass up when fortunate enough to be in the area. This Texas native institution got its beginnings with Travis Dickey, a WWII veteran with a love of gab and slow cooked...