In the spirit of the season, we’re so thankful to everyone who helped to make this year’s “Bouquets for Books” book drive a big success for our public libraries.
We collected 1,452 new children’s books during the event, which ran Nov. 1-8. Here’s the breakdown by library system and the number of books donated in the respective counties:
• Berks County Public Libraries: 241
• Cumberland County Library System: 158
• Dauphin County Library System: 130
• Hershey Public Library (independent): 125
• Lebanon County Libraries: 182
• Library System of Lancaster County: 309
• York County Library System: 307
In its nine years, Bouquets for Books has collected nearly 14,000 books for the libraries.
Author: Neal
Royer’s stores collecting ‘Holiday Mail for Heroes’ Nov. 17-Dec. 5
Royer’s Flowers & Gifts and the American Red Cross are teaming up this year to deliver “Holiday Mail for Heroes.”
From Nov. 17 through Dec. 5, Royer’s stores will collect holiday cards and coloring pages that will be delivered to patients at the Lebanon VA Medical Center. Red Cross volunteers will organize the cards and tie them with ribbons for hand delivery to the veterans.
Cards may be dropped off during normal business hours.
The Red Cross, which created the national “Holiday Mail for Heroes” program, offers these guidelines for preparing cards:
• Include messages of support and thanks;
• Use generic salutations such as “Dear Service Member” as cards addressed to specific individuals can not be delivered through this program;
• Don’t include letters or inserts such as photos;
• Don’t include email or home addresses on the cards: the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships;
• Sign your name to them;
• Refrain from choosing cards with glitter as it can aggravate health issues of ill and injured warriors.
Coloring pages are available at all Royer’s stores or can be downloaded here, courtesy of Coloring-Page.net:
Fox 43 Morning News features Royer’s annual children’s book drive
You might say that Fox 43 Morning News carved out some time to talk about Halloween and, more so, Royer’s annual children’s book drive.
Barry Spengler, Royer’s vice president of operations, joined host Chris Garrett to discuss “Bouquets for Books,” which returns for its ninth year Nov. 1-8. In its first eight years, the book drive collected more than 12,400 new children’s books for area public libraries.
Customers who donate a new children’s book will receive a free bouquet, up to three per family per visit. Barry explained that the book drive kicks off Saturday with a Royer’s Kids Club event, open to ages 5 to 12 in all stores.
Barry also showcased an assortment of Halloween arrangements.
You can view the entire segment by clicking here.
Introducing your rewards program: Petal Perks
Research shows the emotional and behavioral benefits associated with flowers and plants. Having them around your home or office is a great way to keep your spirits bright as daylight dwindles.
You’ll get another lift from our new customer rewards program: Petal Perks.
We included Petal Perks cards in our fall catalog. If you didn’t receive one, you can pick one up at any of our stores.
With Petal Perks, customers earn one point for each penny they spend and 300 points for each order they place: every 15,000 points earns a $5 discount on a future purchase.
Petal Perks applies to all purchases, whether made in store, online or on the phone. What’s more, points don’t expire as long as you make at least two purchases annually.
Here you’ll find complete details about Petal Perks.
So with winter fast approaching, be sure to keep plenty of flowers and plants around. They’ll help you perk up, and you can get the most out of Petal Perks.
The making of our fall catalog
Our 40-page fall catalog arrived in tens of thousands of mailboxes in October. (If you didn’t receive one, you can pick up a copy at any of our stores.)
With each of our catalogs, we change approximately 20 percent of the product lineup. Ultimately, it’s our customers who determine which arrangements stay in the lineup over the long haul.
How an arrangement makes it into the menu is an exhaustive process. It’s a long way from auditioning for a role to walking the red carpet, in other words.
Weak-selling arrangements are removed, or they are redesigned to give them a more current look. Sometimes an arrangement is discontinued because its container is no longer available.
Once we know how many items are being removed, we begin developing the new items. Inspiration comes from visiting other florists; from walking through gift trade shows in Atlanta and Dallas; from visiting container suppliers to spot trends in colors and styles.
Some of the ideas come from previous holiday selections. If a Mother’s Day item sells out early, for instance, we know there is strong customer demand for it, and it could get into the lineup.
Flower growers are part of the process, too, as we constantly seek out new suppliers. They must be able to provide premium product on a consistent basis. Currently, we are testing flowers from Ethiopia.
In late May, a small team pulls together new containers, flowers and ideas in order to develop new arrangement concepts.
Value engineered
Once we have the concepts, a team of designers turns them into actual arrangements, collaborating on some items or coming up with their own interpretations on others.
We buy flowers in all varieties and colors to keep our lineup fresh and interesting for our customers and designers alike. We also want flowers that we know will be available for at least a year.
With the arrangements made, the original group reconvenes in June/July to make final selections.
The arrangements are “value engineered” to give the best value to our customers. Perhaps better-priced flowers or containers can be used without upsetting the integrity of the designs.
Finally, the approved arrangements are professionally photographed for inclusion in the catalog.
And now it’s in the hands of our customers, who will vote with their pocketbooks and ultimately determine which arrangements stay in our lineup.
2014 ‘Bouquets for Books’ library wish lists
Our annual “Bouquets for Books” book drive returns Nov. 1-8 to benefit area public libraries. Here are the libraries’ wish lists:
BERKS COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES
“Stop Drop and Roll” by Margery Cuyler
“An Ordinary Princess” by Sally Huss
“Whoever You Are” by Mem Fox
“Not Everyone is Nice” by Frederick Alimonti
“Ron Sleeps Alone” by Sigal Adler
“Leo-Superhero” by TheBrothers
“Even Monsters Are Afraid” by Vonit Werber
“Daddy is Not” by Yonit Werber
“Mommy is Not” by Yonit Werber
Any Step 1 or Step 2:
Fancy Nancy
Amelia Bedelia
Puppy Place
Kitten Corner
Dork Diaries
Hank Zipzer
Elephant and Piggie
Miss Spider
Berenstain Bears
Board books:
(Anything ) Pete the Cat
“Banana!” Ed Vere
“Good Night Moon”
“Trucks: Wizz, Zoom, Rumble!”
“Elephant and Piggie”
Books by Mo Willems
CUMBERLAND COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM
Any titles in these series:
A to Z Mysteries
Amelia Bedelia
Bailey School Kids
Beginner Reader books such as I Can Read, Rookie Readers
Berenstain Bears
Caillou
Curious George
Clifford the Big Red Dog
Dinotrux
Disney
Dora or Diego
Elephant and Piggie
Fancy Nancy
Froggy
Franklin
Geronimo Stilton
I Spy
Lego
My Weird School
Pete the Cat
Star Wars early readers (especially Lego ones)
Thomas the Tank Engine
Books by these authors/illustrators:
Sandra Boynton
Margaret Wise Brown
Eric Carle (especially paperbacks)
Dr. Seuss
Ed Emberley (esp. Go Away, Big Green Monster!)
Mo Willems
Picture books:
“I Stink”/”I’m Dirty” and/or “I’m Mighty” by Kate McMullan and Jim McMullan
“The Long, Long Line” by Tomoko Ohmura
“Maisy’s Bedtime” by Lucy Cousins
“Maisy Cleans Up” by Lucy Cousins
“Simpson’s Sheep Won’t Go to Sleep!” by Bruce Arant
“The Snatchabook” by Helen Docherty
“This is the Farmer” by Nancy Tafuri
DAUPHIN COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM
Anything by:
Mo Willems
Eric Carle
Dr. Seuss
Rosemary Wells
Sandra Boynton
Rick Riordan
Lemony Snicket (Daniel Handler)
John Green
Cassandra Claire
Veronica Roth
Any book in these series:
Pete the Cat by James Dean
Magic Tree House by Mary Pope Osborne
Rainbow Magic by Daisy Meadows
Junie B. Jones by Barbara Park
Big Nate by Lincoln Pierce
I Spy by Jean Marzollo
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Middle School by James Patterson
Dork Diaries by Rachel Renee Russell
Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold
Geronimo Stilton by Geronimo Stilton
Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey
American Girls by Various Authors
Artemis Fowl by Eion Colfer
HERSHEY PUBLIC LIBRARY
Dean, Kimberly and James. “Pete the Cat and the New Guy”
Litwin, Eric. “Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes”
“Pokemon: Kalos Region Handbook”
“Pokemon Essential Handbook”
Brown, Peter. “Mr. Tiger Goes Wild”
Bryant, Jen. “A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin”
Keller, Laurie. “Bowling Alley Bandits”
McCarthy, Meghan. “Daredevil: The Daring Life of Betty Skelton”
McCarty, Peter. “Chloe”
Sternberg, Julie. “Like Bug Juice on a Burger”
Fairlie, Emily. “The Lost Treasure of Tuckernuck”
Fradin, Judith Bloom. “The Price of Freedom: How One Town Stood up to Slavery”
Harley, Bill. “Charlie Bumpers vs. The Teacher of the Year”
Kurtz, Chris. “The Adventures of a South Pole Pig”
Laidlaw, Rob. “No Shelter Here”
Moss, Marissa. “Barbed Wire Baseball”
Spinelli, Jerry. “Jake and Lily”
Sutherland, Tui T. “The Dragonet Prophecy”
Tavares, Matt. “Becoming Babe Ruth”
Wissinger, Tamera. “Gone Fishing: A Novel in Verse”
Fradin, Judith Bloom. “Stolen into Slavery: The True Story of Solomon Northup, Free Black Man”
Grabenstein, Chris. “Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library”
Gratz, Alan. “Prisoner B-3087”
Green, Tim. “Force Out”
Messner, Kate. “Wake Up Missing”
Paulsen, Gary. “Road Trip”
Stout, Glenn. “From Hardships to Championships”
Herback, Geoff. “I’m with Stupid”
Hoose, Phillip. “Moonbird: a Year on the Wind with the Great Survivor B95”
Knisley, Lucy. “Relish: My Life in the Kitchen”
Murdock, Emily. “If You Find Me”
Pena, Matt de la. The Living”
Shepherd, Megan. “The Madman’s Daughter”
LEBANON COUNTY LIBRARY SYSTEM
Annville Free Library:
“This Is The Farmer” by Nancy Tafuri
Babymouse series by Jennifer & Matt Holm
My Weird School & My Weird School Daze series by Dan Gutman
Big Nate series by Lincoln Peirce
Timmy Failure series by Stephan Pastis
Katie Woo series by Fran Manushkin
Ivy & Bean series by Annie Barrows
Lunch Lady series by Jarrett Krosoczka
Amelia Bedelia chapter books by Herman Parish
Platypus Police Squad by Jarrett Krosoczka
Superhero Squad series (various authors)
Comics Squad: Recess by Jennifer Holm
Punk Farm & Punk Farm on Tour by Jarrett Krosoczka
Lego books
Superhero books
Books with hero themes
Lebanon Community Library
“Thumpy Feet” by Betsy Lewin
“Not So fast, Bash and Dash” by Rev. W. Awdry
“Lego Ninjago: Destiny of Doom” by Greg Farshtey
“Lego Ninjago: The Green Ninja” by Greg Farshtey
“Fancy Nancy: Nancy Clancy Sees the Future” by Jane O’Connor
“Mix it Up” by Herve Tullet
“Rosie Revere, Engineer” by Andrea Beaty
“Dear Zoo” by Rod Campbell
“Dragons Love Tacos” by Adam Rubin
“Beautiful Oops!” by Barney Saltzberg
Matthews Public Library
“Dream Animals: A Bedtime Story” by Emily Winfield Martin
“Journey” by Aaron Becker
“Hello, My Name is Ruby” by Philip Stead
“Dream Friends” by You Byum
“The Great Lollipop Caper” by Dan Krall
“Toys in Space” by Mini Grey
“Oh So Tiny Bunny” by David Kirk
“Max and Milo Go to Sleep!” by Heather Long
“Flora and the Flamingo” by Molly Idle
“Spike: The Ugliest Dog in the Universe” by Debra Frasier
“Blanket & Bear, a Remarkable Pair” by L.J.R. Kell
Myerstown Community Library
“When Marian Sang” by Pam Munoz Ryan
“Bone” by Jeff Smith
“Peek-a-Who?” by Nina Laden
“Horton and the Kwuggerbug” by Charles Cohen
“Doggies” by Sandra Boynton
“My Mouth is a Volcano” by Julia Cook
“Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” by Annie Kubler
“Have you Filled a Bucket Today” by Carol McCloud
“Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day” by Judith Viorst
“Amelia Bedelia” by Peggy Parish
Palmyra Public Library
“The Smallest Girl in the Smallest Grade” by Justin Roberts (ages 3-5)
“Shh! We Have a Plan” by Chris Haughton (ages 3-7)
“The Princess in Black” by Shannon Hale (ages 5 -8)
“Dojo Daycare” by Chris Tougas (age 3-7)
“The Lego Neighborhood Book: Build Your Own Town!” by Brian Lyles and Jason Lyles (ages 10 and up)
“Greenglass House” by Kate Milford (ages 10 to 14)
“Lego Ninjago: The Visual Dictionary (Masters of Spinjitzu)” (ages 9 to 11)
“Tuesday Tucks Me In: The Loyal Bond between a Soldier and His Service Dog” by Luis Carlos Montalván, (ages 4 to 8 )
“Little Elliot, Big City” (hardcover) by Mike Curato (ages 4-8)
“And Two Boys Booed” by Judith Viorst (ages 4-8)
Richland Community Library
“Jet Plane” by David Macaulay
“The Way Things Work” by David Macaulay
“Rosie Revere, Engineer” by Andrea Beaty
“The Man in the Moon” by William Joyce
“The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore” by William Joyce
“Ramona Quimby, Age 8” by Beverly Cleary
“Pippi Longstocking” by Astrid Lindgren
“Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH” by Robert C. O’Brien
“Encyclopedia Brown and the Case of the Secret Pitch” by Donald Sobol
“Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective” by Donald Sobol
“How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes are Untied” by Jess Keating
“Because of Mr. Terupt” by Rob Buyea
“365 Days of Wonder: Mr. Browne’s Book of Precepts” by R. J. Palacio
“The Tree Lady” by H. Joseph Hopkins
“Flight School” by Lita Judge
LIBRARY SYSTEM OF LANCASTER COUNTY
Any titles in these series:
Little Critter books by Mercer Mayer
Berenstain Bears
Bob the Builder
Curious George
Clifford the Big Red Dog
Froggy books by Jonathan London
Franklin books by Paulette Bourgeois
Caillou by Pierre Brignaud
Thomas the Tank Engine
My Little Pony
Capital Mysteries by Ron Roy
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Smurfs
Jake and the Pirates
We Both Read
Warriors or Survivors series by Erin Hunter
Beginner reader books:
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
Fancy Nancy
Superheroes
Barbie
Star Wars
Pete the Cat
Dora
Dorling Kindersley readers Beginning to read books
Seasonal and all holiday books
Books by these authors/illustrators:
Dr. Seuss
Margaret Wise Brown
Mo Willems
Eric Carle
Books about these subjects:
Tractors
Trucks
Trains
Planes
Fire Engines
Dinosaurs
Shapes
Colors
Numbers
Alphabet
Lego
Manners
Doctors
Dentists
Going to daycare
Going to school
Taking care of pets
Countries of the world
YORK COUNTY LIBRARIES
“Mix it Up” by Herve Tullet
“The Book Without Pictures” by B.J. Novak
“Sisters” by Raina Telgemeier
“Tap the Magic Tree” by Christie Matheson
Board books
Holiday books
Picture books
Chapter books
Nov. 1 kids club event kicks off ‘Bouquets for Books’ to benefit area libraries
A book drive to benefit area public libraries represents the final chapter in the Royer’s Kids Club 2014 event schedule.
On Nov. 1, children ages 5 to 12 are asked to bring a new children’s book in support of our annual “Bouquets for Books” event. You can view the libraries’ wish lists here.
Participants will have an opportunity to make a fall arrangement and will receive a balloon.
Time slots are available at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Registration is required by calling your nearest Royer’s store.
Our new Power of Pink bouquet benefits breast cancer research
Among the arrangements debuting with our 2014 fall catalog is the Power of Pink bouquet.
It packs plenty of pink: a 9-inch pink vase holds an all around arrangement in shades of pink, featuring a lily, gerbera, three roses, alstroemeria, carnations, mini-carnations, caspia and a sheer bow.
As for power, that derives from the good we hope it does in the fight against breast cancer.
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Approximately 40,000 women in the United States are expected to die from breast cancer in 2014, according to breastcancer.org.
The much better news is that death rates have declined for decades, there are millions of breast cancer survivors, and the fight for a cure continues.
This is why for every Power of Pink arrangement sold, we are donating $10 to breast cancer research. We are committed to this cause, so we’re offering this arrangement year-round.
Meanwhile, if you are a woman between the ages of 50 and 74, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that you have a screening mammogram every two years.
‘Bouquets for Books’ returns Nov. 1-8 to benefit area public libraries
Royer’s annual children’s book drive – “Bouquets for Books” – will return Nov. 1-8.
The books will benefit public libraries in Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon and York counties. Royer’s has stores in each of the counties.
In its eight years, Bouquets for Books has collected more than 12,400 books for the libraries.
For each book, donors will receive a free bouquet, up to three per family per visit, while supplies last. Used books will not be accepted.
We get your homecoming going on Fox 43
It was a sort of homecoming for our Barry Spengler, making his first appearance on Fox 43 Morning News in a number of months.
But Barry was there to talk about a different kind of homecoming: the high school dance kind.
Joining Fox 43’s Heather Warner, Barry showed some of the bling and accents that are popular these days.
Homecoming, he said, tends to be less formal.
“It’s not like prom,” he said “You can go a little bit over the top. It’s cool.”
Other highlights:
- Not all girls go to homecoming with a date but rather attend with a group of girlfriends. Parents can make it special by getting “a little something” for them, Barry said, holding a small wrist corsage.
- For guys who want to make a really good impression: While you’re getting a corsage for your date, try also bringing a single rose for her mother.
“You’ll score some huge points,” Barry said, “that or just a little bouquet for the hand. Big points.”