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STEPHANIE MILLERDAVIS LIBRARY SUMMER READING GRANT PROGRAM Pierre, S.D.-- The Stephanie Miller-Davis Library Summer Reading Grant Program is now in its sixth year of supporting summer reading programs in small rural communities in partnership with the South Dakota Community Foundation (SDCF) and the South Dakota State Library (SDSL). The program to date has distributed over $220,000 to libraries in rural communities across South Dakota.

Stephanie loved books. She started her legacy by donating children's books and bookcases to the school library in her hometown of Murdo, SD. She wanted to provide the children in the community the books she longed to read as a child growing up on the South Dakota prairie.

'My mother would be so excited to see the impact this money is having on so many kid's lives,' said Stephanie's daughter Kate Davis. 'Access to books was a passion of hers and she would have loved to support the work of so many parents, teachers, librarians, and other community members in towns across South Dakota,' added her daughter Anne Franz.

'The South Dakota Community Foundation is proud to partner with the Stephanie Miller-Davis family as they perpetuate their mother's passion and investment in early childhood literacy across South Dakota,' said Jeff Veltkamp, SDCF Director of Development. 'I think Stephanie would be very proud to see her daughters continuing her investment in children.'

SDCF works to support philanthropy in South Dakota by connecting donors with causes they care about and providing expertise in managing charitable funds. SDCF administers nearly 1,300 funds benefiting thousands of wonderful causes every year. To learn more about charitable opportunities through SDCF, please visit SDCommunityFoundation. org or call 800.888.1842.

The South Dakota State Library (SDSL), a division of the South Dakota Department of Education, supports local libraries and works to build capacity within the state's public and school libraries. The State Library encourages families to visit their local library, get involved in events and activities and keep growing readers. To learn more, please visit https://library.sd.gov/.

In 2025, each of the following libraries were awarded a $1,500 grant to support their summer reading programs:

• BISON PUBLIC LIBRARY

• COZARD MEMORIAL LIBRARY (CHAMBERLAIN)

• DOLAND COMMUNITY LIBRARY • EMIL M. LARSON LIBRARY (CLARK)

• EVELYN LANG PUBLIC LIBRARY (SPRINGFIELD

• FREEMAN PUBLIC LIBRARY

• GRANT COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY (MILBANK)

• JACKSON COUNTY LIBRARY (KADOKA)

• LAKE ANDES PUBLIC LIBRARY • LANGFORDPUBLICLIBRARY

• PARKER PUBLIC LIBRARY

• PIEDMONTVALLEYLIBRARY

• SCOTLAND COMMUNITY LIBRARY

• TRIPP COUNTY LIBRARY GROSSENBURG MEMORIAL (WINNER)

• VIBORG PUBLIC LIBRARY

• WAUBAY PUBLIC LIBRARY

• WEBSTER PUBLIC LIBRARY

• WHITE LAKE COMMUNITY LIBRARY

• WHITEWOOD PUBLIC LIBRARY SDCF is a public non-profit organization established in 1987. SDCF, with offices in Pierre, Rapid City, Sioux Falls and Aberdeen administers over 1,200 funds benefiting hundreds of charitable organizations annually. The Foundation distributed over $30 million in grants in 2023 which made a tremendous difference in communities statewide. This would not have been possible without the generosity of our donors. If you have a specific cause you would like to support or would prefer to give for the general good of our state, visit sdcommunityfoundation. org/giving to learn more or call 1-800-888-1842.