Binc’s Fifth “Bookseller Stories” Newsletter: “One Bad Thing After Another”

The Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) sent out the fifth volume of its Bookseller Stories newsletter on Monday, August 19. The nonprofit organization launched this monthly series so donors could see the life-saving and life-changing impact they have on the lives of booksellers every day. In each story, booksellers give their account of how Binc helped them recover from a financial emergency. Binc provides financial assistance to booksellers experiencing an emergency or hardship caused by illness, natural disasters, and more. Read the fifth volume of Bookseller Stories here:

“One Bad Thing After Another” (Bookseller Stories, vol. 5 / / August ’19) 

There are times in life when it seems that everything is going wrong at once. Or that the universe is conspiring against you. The good news is, because of you, during these hard moments when it feels like there is nowhere to turn and the unexpected pile-on of bad news feels unending, Binc is here and ready to help.

A bookseller recently suffered a stroke, which seemed to unleash an unending string of misfortune and hardship. While recovering from the stroke, their spouse lost their job. A beloved sibling passed away, requiring out-of-state travel and weeks off of work. A change in their spouse’s health resulted in the resurfacing of an old illness. The bookseller fell, and their injury required surgery. Their spouse’s mother was recently admitted into hospice care, so the family is preparing for the possibility of the need to travel and arrange another funeral this year.

Even with health insurance, worker’s compensation, an understanding employer, and a small savings account, this bookseller and their family have been completely wiped out — emotionally, physically, and financially.

When a bookseller hits a string of misfortunes like this, you give the gift of relief and breathing space during extraordinarily difficult times. Because of generous supporters like you, this bookseller will be able to take care of their immediate needs, build back up their savings that much more quickly, and take a deep breath. We are hopeful that their string of unfortunate events has come to an end, and this bookseller and their family can begin to recover.

P.S. We never want anyone to compare their need to anyone else’s and we never want people to not call Binc for help because “someone else needs it more”. Thankfully, today, it is not a matter of helping one bookseller and not another. Due to the generosity of supporters like you, we can help every qualifying bookseller who comes to us for help.

“Bad things happen to people no matter what the situation is, so that’s what I tell people: use the help that is offered.” —a bookseller helped by our donors

Visit the Binc website to make a donation, and read the other “Bookseller Stories” newsletters here. Additional bookseller testimonials can be found on the Great Nonprofits review website.