Texas BookShare Supports Aspiring Eagle Scout’s Youth Literacy Goals
By Alisa Pierce

A good book can take a child anywhere – from a faraway kingdom to the depths of the ocean – even from a hospital bed. Now, Medical City Children’s Hospital in Dallas has more than 650 books to share with young patients, thanks to a physician’s son and his Eagle Scout mission.

Nathan Peng launched the project, “Literacy Matters in Medicine,” with a simple message: “One Book. One Child. Endless Possibilities.” Candidates for Scouting America’s highest rank are required to plan, organize, and lead “a significant community service project,” per Scout Life.

Nathan learned about Texas BookShare from his father, Dallas reproductive endocrinology and infertility physician Noel Peng, MD, and saw an opportunity to expand what he was already building. Books, he believed, could offer children in the hospital more than entertainment – comfort, imagination, and a reason to keep dreaming about the future.

Funded by the Texas Medical Association Foundation, Texas BookShare provides books to physicians and TMA Alliance chapters for distribution to children in partnership with county medical societies, local physicians and clinics, and community organizations. Physicians can “prescribe” books on healthy-living topics in English and Spanish during well-child visits.

Nathan’s love of reading was shaped in part by his ninth-grade English teacher at St. Mark’s School of Texas, who taught him what literature can offer. His passion grew with his volunteer work teaching English to elementary-school students in rural communities. He hoped the books he gathered could spark the same connection for children spending time in a hospital.

“I wanted to address two related challenges: difficulties understanding medical information and limited access to books for children,” Nathan told Texas Medicine Today. “Texas BookShare’s mission aligned with my belief that every child deserves access to books and the opportunities they provide.”

Nathan initially began his project by developing a medical-terminology resource and website intended to help patients and families with limited English proficiency decode common clinical terms. As the project matured, he saw that technology alone would not reach as many families as he had hoped.

With guidance from his troop scoutmaster, Nathan also undertook a neighborhood book drive. He coordinated walking routes, divided fellow Scouts into groups, and led them door to door to collect donations.

The combined effort cleared his original 200-book target by a wide margin: about 300 books he gathered before involving BookShare, then with the program’s help, more than 650 books in all – enough to fill two bookshelves he provided for Medical City Children's Hospital.

To Nathan, that number represents more than the books themselves. It represents the generosity of a community willing to come together for children they may never meet.

“I hope more physicians and families will utilize Texas BookShare to promote literacy among children and within medicine,” Nathan said. “The more we use programs like this and put books into the hands of children, the more opportunities we give them to learn, imagine, and dream about their futures.”

For Dr. Peng, the project underscores the connection between literacy and health. In his medical practice, he sees how difficulty understanding health information can affect patients. Reading from an early age builds the skills children later use to understand information, communicate effectively, and make informed decisions, he says.

“The time is now to improve children’s literacy, and access to books is a step forward,” Dr. Peng said. “I’m especially proud of my son for undertaking this big, many-months-long project to improve children’s health literacy.”

Nathan is still collecting donations in hopes of reaching more children.

Thanks to generous support from the TMA Foundation, TMA Alliance chapters, county medical societies, and TMA physician members can host a Texas BookShare event for free. First-time hosts receive a $1,500 grant to purchase books in English and Spanish, for multiple age groups.