REACHING OUT TO HELP OTHERS––Jacob Tobias of Agoura Hills shows some of the books he’s collected as part of his bar mitzvah project. The collection will be given to Title I schools that have a significant number of students from low-income families. Jacob Tobias of Agoura Hills is using his passion for reading to help other children. Jacob, 12, has decided to collect and donate books and dance shoes to children who may otherwise not be able to afford them.

Books are being donated to Title 1 schools in Ventura County and dance shoes are slated for the Lulu Washington Dance Theater in Los Angeles as his bar mitzvah project.

Title 1 schools are institutions with large concentrations of lowincome students as determined by the number of students enrolled in the free and reduced lunch program.

Title 1 funds cover migrant students, students with limited English proficiency, homeless students, students with disabilities, neglected students, delinquent students, at-risk students or any student in need. At-risk students include youths with a high number of absences, single-parent home, low academic performance or low-income family.

Repairing the world, tikkun olam, is a central mitzvah (sacred obligation) of Judaism. As a bar mitzvah student, Jacob is expected to perform a community service project. During the next year, he will continue to collect donations of new or used books and dance shoes to be given to underprivileged schools and dance studios throughout south central Los Angeles and Ventura County.

Originally he had a goal of 1,000 books, but within the first 2½ months of his project, he has exceeded this goal by 556 books. His newest goal is 7,500 books by May 2010.

So far Jacob, a student at Lindero Canyon Middle School, has donated 39 books, games and magazines to the Agoura Laundry Mat, 437 books to the Ventura Unified School District, 501 books to the Norma Harrington Elementary School in Oxnard, five books to Temple Adat Elohim and 175 books to Children’s Hospital of Orange County.

Fifty books were donated to a fire victim in Northridge and a formerly homeless family who moved into their first apartment.

Jacob was to have delivered about 400 books to Conejo Elementary School in Thousand Oaks and 200 books to the Ventura school district.

Jacob has requested each teacher to give at least half of the books away and the remaining can be placed in classrooms and school libraries.He collected 1,556 books and 49 pairs of dance shoes that were awaiting delivery.

To donate books or shoes, call Serena Tobias at (818) 970-6773 or e-mail DonateBooksForKids @Pacbell.net.