Books tell great stories. But the new Harvey vending machine has its own amazing adventure to tell that goes beyond the 200 titles behind its glass.

The machine, which was dedicated at a school activity night last week, was made possible in part by a donation from a self-titled lunch bunch – a group of Harvey volunteers that maintained a 40-year friendship starting in the school’s media center.

In memory of a member of the bunch who recently passed away, the group donated money to purchase materials for the machine.

“I hope this serves as a reminder that friends are forever,” principal Beth Miller said to parents at the dedication. “The friendships you make here with your elementary children will continue, in this case, 40 years.”

The book vending machine, made possible through fundraising efforts spearheaded by the Jack Harvey Volunteers parent group, is located in the school’s main hallway and will serve as an incentive program for positive behavior.

“When a staff member sees a student exhibiting a positive behavior such as paying attention, being on task, prepared for work, sitting quietly, or being kind to others, they receive an Eagle ticket,” Miller said.

With their earned tickets, students can visit the “"Jack Shack Cart,” which includes a ticket for the vending machine.

“Our goal is  two-fold -  to encourage students to exhibit positive behaviors that will continue outside of the school day and to get new books of student interest into all of our students' homes,” Miller said.

To demonstrate how the machine will work, fifth grader Savannah Dumont was the first to select from the 200 books in the machine – Wait Till Helen Comes, a thriller by Mary Downing Hahn.

“I was really nervous because everyone was watching,” Dumont said. “But I was also excited to be the first. I think it will get people excited about reading because it is a vending machine with books, and you really don’t see that.”