Loyola students Andrew Beal and Chris Zimny — the masterminds behind Loomagoo, a Web site dedicated to providing low-priced textbooks and lecture notes for area universities — are now attempting to offer the same services provided on their Web site to local public elementary and high school students.
Beal, marketing senior and co-creator/owner of Loomagoo said he and his company, along with the New Orleans Youth Rescue Initiative and the New Orleans Public Library, are planning to team up with Borders and Barnes & Noble bookstores to provide new books and promote summer literacy for New Orleans public school students.
Beal said he and his friends thought of the idea early one morning in January while discussing their Web site, when the thought sparked their imaginations.
“I don’t know how it came about, but we just figured we needed to do something to help out New Orleans, the city itself and the people who are from here,” Beal said.
Beal has a working relationship with Jim Bernazzani, the director of The New Orleans Youth Rescue Initiative and former FBI special agent. Bernazzani has helped Beal and Zimny reach contacts like Irvin Mayfield, jazz trumpeter and chairman of the board for the New Orleans Public Library.
Beal is hoping the program will work like this: individuals wanting to donate books can stop by the Borders on Louisiana and St. Charles avenues, or the Barnes & Noble on Veterans Blvd. in Metairie; and purchase brand-new books to be given to the students.
The books purchased and donated will be from the summer reading lists provided by the New Orleans Public School System.
While they were initially just in the business of helping college students, Beal said the boys of Loomagoo were also concerned with the well-being of the New Orleans public school students.
“Most of the kids at Loyola, most of the kids at Tulane, are from here and we’re helping them out. And we’re doing something good,” Beal said. “But, it’s not helping out with the New Orleans public schools, and I knew this is the most feasible thing to do.”
Jaune Jackson can be reached at [email protected].
