The Virginia Festival of the Book is an annual program produced by the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities (VFH) in cooperation with community organizations. Consistent with our mission to promote literacy and reading through an annual celebration of books, festival programs are open to the public, and most are free of charge. Almost every aspect of VABook! is organized and generated by volunteer committees (listed below) who generously contribute their time and energy to this annual celebration of books and reading.

If you'd like to become a VaBook! volunteer, just fill out our online form.

Steering Committee

  • Paul Collinge, Heartwood Books
  • Nancy Damon, VABook! Program Director
  • Tom Dowd, UVa Continuing Ed.
  • Bill Frank, Professor Emeritus, Longwood College
  • Bob Friedman, Hampton Roads Publishing
  • Jane Goodman, VABook! Public Relations
  • Mitchell Hall, Barnes & Noble Booksellers
  • John Halliday, Jefferson-Madison Regional Library
  • Proal Heartwell, The Village School
  • Mary Jane King, Piedmont VA Community College
  • Evette Lamka, Chair of Volunteer Committee
  • Jennifer Little, Center for the Book at the Library of Virginia
  • Paxson MacDonald, VABook! Public Relations
  • Kevin McFadden, VABook! Program Associate
  • Jean Murray, Albemarle County Public Schools
  • Calvin Otto, Chair
  • WIlliam Paquette, Tidewater Community College
  • K.K. Pearson
  • Leah Puryear, UVa Upward Bound Program
  • Tamyra Turner, Piedmont Virginia Community College
  • Robert C. Vaughan, Virginia Foundation for the Humanities
  • Hilda Ward

Publisher's Days Committee

  • Robert Friedman, Chair, Publisher's Days Committee, Hampton Roads Publishing
  • Jim Knowles, Howell Press
  • Nancy Damon, VABook! Program Director
  • Mayapriya Long, Bookwrights Press
  • Mike Marshall, Core Knowledge Foundation
  • Calvin Otto
  • MandyCloud, UVa Internship Program

Program Committee

  • Karl Ackerman, Writer
  • Ingrid Ahlgren, Meridian
  • Louisa Barrett, New Dominion Bookstore
  • Kathi Ann Brown, Milestone Historical Consultants
  • Sally Brown, Master Gardeners Association
  • John Casey, Writer, UVa English Department
  • Avery Chenoweth, Writer
  • Paul Collinge, Chair, Program Committee, Heartwood Books
  • Nancy Damon, VABook! Program Director
  • Susan Tyler Hitchcock, Writer
  • Ravi Howard, Meridian Magazine
  • Kevin McFadden, VABook! Program Associate
  • Katherine McNamara, Archipelago.org
  • Steve Rubin
  • Razel Solow
  • Bella Stander, Freelance Writer
  • Tamyra Turner, Piedmont Virginia Community College
  • Patricia Ward, Writer
  • Henry Weincek, Writer
  • Boyd Zenner, University Press of Virginia

Youth and Family Committee

  • Nancy Cook, Jefferson-Madison Regional Library
  • Susan Coleman, Motheread/Fatheread of Virginia, VFH
  • Nancy Damon, VABook! Program Director
  • Beverly Fahey, St. Anne's Belfield
  • Proal Heartwell, The Village School
  • Carolyn Lawlor, Free Union Country School
  • Jolee Nail Horn, Free Union Country School
  • Kevin McFadden, VABook! Program Associate
  • Judy Rood, Charlottesville City Schools
  • Doug Selden, Albemarle County Schools
  • Bella Stander
  • Karen Waters, Under Fives Program
  • Jean Wilhelm, Piedmont Council for the Arts

Advisory Committee

  • Calvin Otto, Chair
  • Beverly Bagan
  • Peggy Baggett, VA Commission for the Arts
  • Josef Beery, Josef Beery Graphic Design
  • Terry Belanger, Book Arts Press
  • Lu Bolen, Boys and Girls Club of Charlottesville/Albemarle
  • David Bowerman, County of Albemarle Board of Supervisors
  • Nancy Brockman, Piedmont Council of the Arts
  • Bob Chapel, University of Virginia Department of Drama
  • Paul Collinge, Heartwood Books
  • John Conover
  • Emily Couric, Senate of Virginia
  • Maurice Cox, Charlottesville City Council
  • Pat Crook, Professor Emeritus, Curry School, UVa
  • Nancy Damon, VABook! Program Director
  • Virginia Daugherty, City of Charlottesville, Mayor
  • Arletta Dimberg, Charlottesville City Schools
  • Tom Dowd, UVA Division of Continuing Education
  • Mary Flinn, New Virginia Review
  • Bill Frank, Professor Emeritus, Longwood College
  • Bob Friedman, Hampton Roads Publishing
  • George Garrett, UVa English Department Creative Writing Program
  • Magaret Hager
  • Mitchell Hall, Barnes & Noble Booksellers
  • John Halliday, Jefferson-Madison Regional Library
  • Jennifer Little, Center for the Book at the Library of Virginia
  • Linda Holtslander, VFH Northern Virginia Regional Council
  • Deborah Honeycutt, Charlottesville Downtown Foundation
  • Charlotte Humphris, County of Albemarle Board of Supervisors
  • Mary Jane King, Piedmont Virginia Community College
  • Laura Kollar, Piedmont Council of the Arts
  • Evette Lamka
  • Rob Leventhal, Blueridge Internet Technologies
  • Charles Lewis, Kathy's Produce
  • Suzanne Liola, VABook! Program Director
  • Beverly Jane Loo, UVa Divison of Continuing Education
  • Lawrence McConnell, The Daily Progress
  • Michael Mallory, Ron Brown Scholar Program
  • Forrest Marshall, County of Albemarle Board of Supervisors
  • Jean Murray, Albemarle County Public Schools
  • Gary O'Connell, Charlottesville City Manager
  • Priscilla Ord, VFH Piedmont Regional Council
  • William Paquette, Tidewater Community College
  • John Peale
  • Lydia Peale
  • K.K. Pearson
  • Leah Puryear, UVa Upward Bound Program
  • Kathy Reed, UVa. Office of the Provost
  • Bob Reynolds
  • Meredith Richards, Charlottesville City Council
  • Blanche Herring Scarf, VFH Chesapeake Regional Council
  • Lisa Russ-Spaar, UVa Creative Writing Program
  • Robert W. Tucker, Jr., County of Albemarle
  • Tamyra Turner, Piedmont Virginia Community College
  • Camille Wells, Monticello
  • Karen Whittenborg, University of Virginia Libraries, Alderman Library
  • Agnes Cross White, The Tribune
  • Margaret Wright, Sprint
  • Robert C. Vaughan, Virginia Foundation for the Humanities

Volunteer Committee

  • Fran Canon, Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, Staff, Information Desk
  • John Campagnino, Site Coordinator, The Rotunda
  • Catherine Campagnino, Site Coordinator, The Rotunda
  • Nancy Damon, VABook! Program Director
  • Tish Ritchie Eppink, Site Coordinator, UVa Bookstore
  • Peg Kern, Site Coordinator, The Village School
  • Evette Lamka, Chair
  • April Gresham Maranto, Coordinator, Information Desk
  • Maggie Maranto, Site Coordinator, McIntire Room of the Central Library
  • Kim Martin, Coordinator, Food and Beverage Donations
  • Wiley Martin, Food and Beverage Donations
  • Kevin McFadden, VABook! Program Associate
  • K.K. Pearson, Coordinator, Author Hospitality
  • Bob Reynolds, Signage
  • Evie Safran, Mailings