In 1998, Miss Fay B. Kaigler, a retired elementary school teacher and native Mississippian, generously funded the first Kaigler-Lamont Award to be given for distinguished service to children by a librarian or teacher. On December 5, 2001, the festival was renamed in honor of Miss Kaigler, who contributed a planned gift to the festival (the Children's Book Festival at The University of Southern Mississippi). Miss Kaigler, a longtime supporter of the festival and the university, taught in the public schools of California and Mississippi for 33 years, instilling the importance of reading in her students. She first attended the festival at the invitation of her friend Ruth Lamont, a children's librarian from Baton Rouge. Over the years the two traveled to Hattiesburg each spring to participate in the festival. Although she is a graduate of Louisiana State University, Miss Kaigler's love of reading and children drew her to Southern Miss through the festival. Her gift to the university will continue the festival's tradition of encouraging writers to strive for excellence in children's literature and of providing information to teachers and librarians.
In 1998, Miss Fay B. Kaigler, a retired elementary school teacher and native Mississippian, generously funded the first Kaigler-Lamont Award to be given for distinguished service to children by a librarian or teacher. On December 5, 2001, the festival was renamed in honor of Miss Kaigler, who contributed a planned gift to the festival (the Children's Book Festival at The University of Southern Mississippi). Miss Kaigler, a longtime supporter of the festival and the university, taught in the public schools of California and Mississippi for 33 years, instilling the importance of reading in her students. She first attended the festival at the invitation of her friend Ruth Lamont, a children's librarian from Baton Rouge. Over the years the two traveled to Hattiesburg each spring to participate in the festival. Although she is a graduate of Louisiana State University, Miss Kaigler's love of reading and children drew her to Southern Miss through the festival. Her gift to the university will continue the festival's tradition of encouraging writers to strive for excellence in children's literature and of providing information to teachers and librarians.
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