Classic Children's Book Fund

Chuck (Kathy) Bayles Classic Children’s Book Fund

Established in 2009 in loving memory by her families

“Here is Edward Bear, coming downstairs now, bump, bump, bump, on the back of his head, behind Christopher Robin. It is, as far as he knows, the only way of coming downstairs, but sometimes he feels that there really is another way, if only he could stop bumping for a moment to think of it.”
A. A. Milne Winnie the Pooh, first published in 1926 by E.P. Dutton

An endowment fund for the purchase of classic children’s books has been established at the Greensboro Free Library to honor the memory of Chuck (Kathy) Bayles, a longtime summer resident of Greensboro. Chuck loved books, she loved reading, she loved children, and she loved classic children’s literature. She treasured and shared her passion for such children’s classics as A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh, E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web, and Rudyard Kipling’s Just So Stories with all the children in her life, and there were many. Kids adored Chuck. She was so childlike herself, any kid she met recognized her as a kindred spirit and there was an instant bond.

Born in Columbus, Ohio on May 21, 1956, the third child in a family of four, Chuck was perhaps the quirkiest of the four siblings. Her given name was Kathryn Ann but as a teenager she changed her name to Chuck, inspired in part by the Charlie Brown character in Charles Shultz’s Peanuts cartoon, and the name stuck. Chuck grew up in Bloomington, Indiana and attended college there receiving her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in child development from Indiana University. Having spent wonderful summers in Greensboro for most of her life, Chuck moved to Barre, VT in 1990 where she worked in childcare for a decade prior to establishing the consulting firm, Learning Partners, with her business partner and best friend, Deb Curtis.

Chuck devoted her life to making the world a better place for children through her work in childcare and through her loving attention to any child who came into her life. This endowment is a tribute to her memory. Donations to support the endowment can be made at any time by sending your contribution to the Greensboro Free Library, 53 Wilson St., Greensboro, VT 05841, with an indication that it be credited to the Chuck Bayles Classic Children’s Book Fund.

In addition to this endowment, Chuck’s families are also supporting much-needed refurbishing in the children’s section of the Library. This will include painting, new carpet, bookshelves, and comfy chairs to make the space more inviting to library visitors both young and old. A celebration of these renovations and the endowment will be held at the Library this summer, so check back for details.