Colin Bloom is a teenager living in New York City (NYC) and is a dual USA / South African citizen. He visits South Africa often and will be attending the African Leadership Academy in Johannesburg, South Africa from January 2023.
In NYC, Colin volunteers as a literacy tutor with Reading Partners in Harlem each week and since 2017, has provided free after-school STEM classes to underprivileged children at Washington Heights. Colin founded his school’s Architecture and Urban Planning Club and worked in construction over the summer. He plays water polo, golf and referees flag football games on weekends.
Colin founded Libraries for Literacy, an organisation dedicated to increasing access to books for South African schools. In March 2020, he established his first library at an under-resourced school in Doornkop, Soweto. Colin collected and transported over 1,500 beginner and early reader books to create the school’s first library.
In March 2022, Colin brought over 3,000 books to launch the new Tshaneni Primary School library in rural KwaZulu Natal. He also collaborated with Room to Read Africa to purchase more than 100 children’s books in Zulu. As the school building didn’t have space for a library, Colin spent half a year fundraising and reached out to partner with Breadline Africa to place a converted shipping container next to the school hall.
