\u201cWhen you come out on the other side of having read like 10 Katherine Paterson books,\u201d Cohen said, citing a favorite children\u2019s book author, \u201cyou know more about how humans are, about what it means to be a child growing up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Giveaways and book parties<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Photos-for-Press-12.jpg\")
Credit: Brooklyn Book Bodega<\/p>\n
Cohen, a teacher, Agarra, an engineer and Jachimowicz, a child psychologist, first talked about the problem of providing books to students shortly after the start of school in 2018. Other parents and teachers contributed to the idea, including a Spanish teacher who suggested calling it Brooklyn Book Bodega. Just as \u201ca bodega is your corner store,\u201d Cohen recalled, \u201cbooks should be as accessible as your bodega.\u201d An art teacher drew the logo that now graces its merch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Their first book giveaway that December also came about through the involvement of a fellow parent. Cohen, Agarra and Jachimowicz were discussing the idea at school when a parent offered a lead. He was a gym supervisor at a NYCHA community center in Fort Greene that had just received a large infusion of books.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The giveaway was held at the center. The best part, Cohen said, was \u201cneighbors who wouldn\u2019t have necessarily talked to neighbors were talking to each other.\u201d Suddenly, NYCHA tenants and renters at high rises across Flushing Avenue were communing around the free books. These people from different walks of life reflected a microcosm of New York itself, Cohen said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cParents, caregivers, family members, they are rooting for not only their children, but all of our children,\u201d she said. \u201cWe had this real joy in community, joy in knowledge building and literacy and [feeling] we can do good by our kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
Over the next few months, the Brooklyn Book Bodega\u00a0 held more literacy events. Giveaways, paired with activities, felt more like parties. Families received tickets they could exchange for books, as at a fair. There were also performers who sang with the children or a special education expert to speak with parents.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sorting out the operations\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Photos-for-Press-07.jpg\")
Credit: Brooklyn Book Bodega<\/p>\n
As the giveaways turned into community events, neighbors began bringing bags of books their kids had outgrown. With pro bono legal support, Brooklyn Book Bodega became an official nonprofit in 2019. The operation shifted from a purely volunteer effort to a structured organization that required fundraising, grant writing and forming a board. Their funding comes from a wide range of supporters<\/a> that include philanthropic foundations, health systems such as NewYork-Presbyterian and a bevy of banks, colleges and other corporate sponsors.\u00a0<\/p>\n Agarra became its first part-time staffer; she and Cohen later joined full-time. Jachimowicz is on the board. The team branched out to pilot programs with schools and other local partners, such as the Department of Homeless Services.\u00a0<\/p>\n When the pandemic hit, the team had just started a series of events with the Brooklyn Navy Yard, which eventually became the group\u2019s home base, with shelves donated by a Barnes and Noble that was closing.\u00a0<\/p>\n The team started receiving letters from kids saying their eyes were hurting from looking at screens. They wanted books. And \u201cpeople were lonely, people were bored, people were frightened,\u201d Cohen said. \u201cBooks are friends in those situations.\u201d The team reached out to contacts in those families\u2019 neighborhoods to ask if they had extra books.\u00a0<\/p>\n At that point, Agarra (now the chief operating officer)spearheaded the organization\u2019s book distribution system. People could put in a book request through an online form<\/a> on their website that the team would process, then pick up or drop off.\u00a0<\/p>\n Soon masked neighbors were leaving books at others\u2019 doors, and teachers were picking up books from their students\u2019 homes. At the time, mutual aid groups were also reaching out to Brooklyn Book Bodega. So the team, including a cadre of volunteers, started giving out books outside alongside masks and food being distributed.\u00a0<\/p>\n Back to regular book programming and beyond<\/p>\n After the pandemic, Brooklyn Book Bodega leased new space in the Navy Yard with a book processing area and program area. There, the organization returned to its bread-and-butter events \u2013 big book parties. The team also helped interested neighbors build their own community-based libraries and started educational programming, such as \u201cI Love My Bodega<\/a>,\u201d an early childhood literacy workshop.\u00a0<\/p>\n Volunteers have remained a vital force in sorting and distributing books and keeping programming going. They range from high schoolers and parents who drop by with their child on a Saturday to worker groups and neighbors who have been laid off. Still, the team is always looking for more volunteers, either directly with the organization or in starting a book giveaway in their own community.\u00a0<\/p>\n The nonprofit\u2019s goal this year is a big jump: to distribute 250,000 books. They hope to do that piecemeal, largely through a monthly Community Day, at which families can take as many books as they like. The next one is April 11<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cohen\u2019s tips for other nonprofit leaders or entrepreneurs<\/p>\n Be as visionary as you can be, and as cautious as you need to be: \u201cYou can put a lot of energy into something for a limited amount of time. But to put a lot of energy into something for an extended time, you really have to have a plan for fundraising, for who\u2019s going to be the [first] employee, for setting up backend operations.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Grow slow: \u201cI don\u2019t want to grow too fast and then not be able to sustain or support it. If I have a head count of 10 people this year, I don\u2019t want to drop to eight next year. If you\u2019re building the plane while you\u2019re flying it, then you also need to make sure you\u2019re taking care of the people [you\u2019re hiring] and responsible for.\u201d<\/p>\n Stick to your priorities: \u201cFigure out what your priorities are and make sure they align with your bigger picture and goal. Don\u2019t get as lost in the details, in the back and forth.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n You can join Brooklyn Book Bodega at a New York Liberty game, for which it was selected as \u201cNonprofit of the Game,\u201d on May 27. Tickets start at $35<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2014<\/p>\n Brooklyn Book Bodega<\/a><\/p>\n Sign up to volunteer<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Donate to the nonprofit<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Shop its merch here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Learn about upcoming events<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Follow on Instagram at @brooklynbookbodega<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Follow on TikTok at @brooklynbookbodega<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n \t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Photos-for-Press-11-scaled-e1774304165509-1024x620.jpg\")
Credit: Brooklyn Book Bodega<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Photos-for-Press-01.jpg\")
Credit: Brooklyn Book Bodega<\/p>\n