Woman honored for donating children's books after Katrina

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - Dian Ross of Diamondhead, Miss., will be honored Wednesday at ceremonies in New York for getting new books to Gulf Coast children after Katrina.

This was an extension of her ongoing volunteer work at a Hancock County, Miss., food pantry where, since 2003, she has handed out books to the children along with food to the family.

As one of three recipients of Self magazine's first "Women Doing Good" awards, Ross will receive $10,000 for her designated charity, First Books, to purchase books for children in need.

"The $10,000 will obviously reach a lot more children than my little project in Mississippi will now," she said Friday from New York.

"What I hope will happen is First Books will designate a portion of it to the state of Mississippi and I want to encourage other food banks to copy my ideas. These children whose families are already at risk _ I want these children to have the books."

She was selected by reader nomination for single-handedly delivering 30,000 books to children of low-income families and those devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Her award is sponsored by Maybelline New York through its Beauty of Education initiative.

Each of the three recipients will receive $10,000 for their charity. Ross' charity, First Books, provides new books for children in need and has distributed more than 60 million books in thousands of communities.

The other two recipients are Ann Cooper of Oakland, Calif., who is cited for converting school cafeterias into creative culinary classrooms for students through the F3: Food-Family-Farming Foundation. Her award is sponsored by Kashi.

While undergoing treatment, sarcoma cancer survivor Jennifer Goodman Linn of New York City also worked with Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to develop Spin4Survival, a charitable event that raised $200,000 in January 2007. Her charity is the cancer center and her sponsor is Self.

The magazine's December issue will feature an advertorial about the awards. For details on each, visit firstbook.org, cycleforsurvival.org and lunchlessons.org.

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© 2008, The Sun Herald (Biloxi, Miss.).