Foot traffic was heavy all day long in the PS 175 schoolyard in Harlem as more than 1,000 parents, teachers and students stopped by to choose from among the 40,000 books being distributed on April 25 at the UFT-sponsored First Book event. Maria Sarabia, the chapter leader at Teachers College Community School, said the sunny Saturday afternoon gathering “felt like a community all getting together.” She picked books for her 1st-graders and noted that many teachers, paraprofessionals and parents had turned out to help and to shop. Parent Ayisha Irvin, the district’s Community Education Council treasurer, said that her own 8- and 9-year-olds made some good choices while she picked out books for her 2-year-old. “It was a beautiful thing to see,” she said. PS 123 parent Hope Scott called the busy day “a great effort on the part of the UFT,” adding that “parents were excited and grateful.” The books were donated by the nonprofit First Book, which provides books for children who might otherwise not have them. To date, it has distributed more than 125 million books and educational resources to schools and programs for low-income families across the country and Canada. UFT District 5 Representative Zina Burton-Myrick described the day as “a true collaboration” of educators, unions, fraternities, churches, day cares and the NAACP, all under the direction of Anthony Harmon, the UFT’s director of parent and community outreach.