If you look up the words “philanthropist” and “go-getter” in the dictionary, don’t be shocked if you see a picture of David Kyle next to the definitions. Of course, if he had his way you’d be looking at that picture in a donated book while sitting in a South African library.

Kyle, a Topsfield native, remembers going to his local library as a child and having the unlimited choice of any books he could ever wish to read. He never thought twice about this advantage until his junior year at Trinity College in Hartford, CT, during which he left to study abroad in South Africa at Cape Town University. While he was living in Khayelitsha (Kai-uh-leet-sha) a township outside of Cape Town, he taught 10- to 12-year-old children writing skills and English. He found that there was a desperate need for a library when he discovered the children had no books from which to study from or read for pleasure.

“Forty-five percent of schools South Africa still have no books for their students to use,” says Kyle. “As an American I feel that because we come from privileged backgrounds, we tend to take so many things for granted and I felt a tremendous responsibility to help others.”

Taking Action

Not one to wait for someone else to act, Kyle brought Library materials from Cape Town University and created a library in a Khayelitsha school. He realized he didn’t have enough material, so he did what any other college student does when he or she needs something: he called his parents. They, in turn, told his story to fellow parishioners at Trinity Episcopal Church in Topsfield, which led to the donation of more than 1,000 books.

Kyle also helped organize a local information center, which more than 70 South African children utilize everyday, not only to read and study but also to use the recently installed computers donated privately by a corporation. The center now employs a full-time librarian and the goal is to train the teachers to be computer literate so that they are then able to pass that education onto the students.

When Kyle returned to college in Connecticut, he initiated another book drive and this time was able to send more than 2,000 additional books to Khayelitsha. Then, before graduating in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in Behavior of Economic Organizations, he founded a non-profit initiative, aptly named “Books for South Africa”. His current goal is to collect a further 50,000 books to fill a 40-foot container that will set sail from Boston to Cape Town at the end of June. The journey will take 28 days and Kyle plans on returning to South Africa for two weeks in August to speak to people and take photos of his latest endeavor.

South Africa Educational Hardships

The education system in South Africa is dire at best. Schools there are often overcrowded and have too few teachers for so many students. The result is that many students drop out of school and fall into a lifetime of poverty. “Ideally, I’d like to have all of the kids in South Africa have the same, or better opportunity to enrich their lives through education as we do here in America,” says Kyle. “Donating books is one way to go about it.”

One of the better memories Kyle has of his benevolent work involves one very happy girl. “I remember setting up the library with all the donated books and some of the local kids were helping,” says Kyle. “The kids were allowed to take home one book to keep and one girl was so excited to be able to have a book and I thought, ‘Wow... that’s what this is all about!’”

Books donations accepted in Topsfield

Books for South Africa needs help gathering as many books as possible. There will be a container for donations located at the Topsfield Recycling Center on Route 1 during the Saturday days of June 8, 15, 22 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Acceptable donations of used books may include children’s books, reference books, encyclopedias, dictionaries, National Geographic magazines, high-school literature books, picture books, and fiction. All donations are tax-deductable.

Boy Scout Troop 81 of Topsfield is also helping to prepare and collect the books for shipping to South Africa. The troop will sponsor a pick-up service for anyone not able to drop off books at the recycling center. To be eligible for a pick-up you must have at least 50 children's books or a four-cubic box full. Requests for pick-ups should be made before Monday, June 17.