One Librarian's Surprising Observation
How did a school librarian in Lehigh Valley, PA get all 780 of her students to write and mail a handwritten letter? It began with her observation: every kid has a device, and most of their assignments happen on a screen.
Carli Rasich, Library Media Specialist at Joseph P. Liberati Intermediate School, didn't ignore that uneasy feeling she had about screens getting in the way of learning; instead, she decided to use letter writing as a tool to bring back that IRL (in real life) feeling.
In December 2025, every student (4th-6th grades) participated in Carli's library-based workshop to write and mail handwritten letters to fellow students, residents of a local senior home, and members of the armed forces. Their letters were just the beginning, as the students have continued to reap the rewards of their creative expression and real human connections.
Lehigh Valley News was onsite to cover the creative vibes. We thank the local news for raising awareness on the personal and academic benefits of letter writing, reminding us why letter writing was once standard in elementary school curricula in the first place.
Above: Caitlin Alifirenka, Carli Rasich, Sean McGinty (Principal), and Jennifer Yang in the library at Joseph P. Liberati Intermediate School.
Prior to the school-wide workshops, students had not received lessons on letter writing because it was not included in the district's recently-adopted English Language Arts curriculum. Carli wasn't alone in lobbying for a supplement. She partnered with Caitlin Alifirenka, parent of a student at the school and co-author of the New York Times bestselling book, I Will Always Write Back.
Caitlin is a devoted presence in their school district and beyond. Her book about a life-changing friendship with her childhood penpal appears on required reading lists for middle schools across the country, after all. Motivated to stir up creative expression in the students' daily work, Carli and Caitlin pushed to bring Dearist into their school as a teaching resource.
A Small-World Revelation
You never know where a letter will lead. In our case, letters are the deep connection between us all. Extraordinary efforts brought Caitlin's childhood penpal, Martin Ganda, from Zimbabwe to the U.S. on a full academic scholarship for college. Years later, Martin went on to attend graduate school in business, where he was classmates with Jennifer Yang, founder of Dearist...which then led to Caitlin and Jennifer meeting!
Watch the full video on our Educators page.