Ohio University students and community members had the opportunity yesterday to go back to their childhoods and hear OU President Robert Glidden and Athens Mayor Ric Abel, among others, read to them.

Glidden kicked off the day-long Readathon sponsored by Friends of the Libraries of OU. The event lasted from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Colleges, as well as student and community organizations, participated in the event by reading and pledging donations. Some students of a fourth-grade class from East Elementary wrote their own poems and short stories for the occasion.

The readers chose their own selections; some were intended to inspire while others were meant to entertain. Abel read, Oh, the Places You'll Go by Dr. Seuss, a book he said he likes to read to his son.

"One of the avocations of the life of any parent is to read to their child in the hopes that they will be able to have the fierce desire to read during their lives," he said.

The Readathon celebrated reading as well as the services of the library, said John Ray, coordinator of the event and friends board member.

"The friends are there to help improve the quality of services in any way we can to support things that help enhance the libraries and their ability to serve the students and the community," he said.

Another purpose of the Readathon was to raise money for the library student workers scholarship fund. The Friends' goal was to raise $5 for every minute of reading, Ray said.

"There are over 200 students who work in the library, and the library couldn't function without those students," he said. "They are so key to the success of the library. We wanted to figure out a way that we could reward or let them know we care."

The scholarship would be based on a combination of the student's financial need and value as an employee.

"A lot of people are working at the library to raise money for school, so I think it's great that they are setting up a scholarship to help us with the costs," said Megan Devol, a freshman and Alden Library employee.