5th Grader Uses His Allowance Money To Donate 100 Books To The Local Jail

June 30, 2016

A 5th-grader used all of his allowance money to buy books to donate to a local jail in hopes that reading would help turn the inmates' lives around.

Credit: ABC News

Last week, 9-year-old Tyler Fugett walked into the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office in Tennessee with more than 100 books.

The sheriff's office accepted the donation with open arms.

Credit: Montgomery County Sheriff's Office

"He said, 'When I'm thinking bad thoughts, I like to read, so I want to collect books for them,'" Tyler's mom Rebecca Corkren told ABC News.

"He said, 'If they read, they don't have time to think about doing bad things when they come out. Maybe they'll find one thing in there that would make them click to be better people.'"

The Montgomery County Sheriff's Office library has no budget and to taxpayer money goes toward it so they rely 100 percent on donations.

"We live penny to penny and for him to do this, it's a blessing to see," Corkren said. "I've never seen a child with a heart like his."

Tyler is also now collecting toiletry items to donate to inmates and other people in need.