dixson friends center. dixson was killed while serving in iraq back in 2004.ther, jacqueline, was at today's dedication, and the center is available for active and inactive military members and their families. well, thousands of local families came out for the 25th anniversary of the african-american children's book fair. nbc 10 and telemundo 62 are proud sponsors and today many of my colleagues took part in the event. nbc 10's aundrea cline-thomas has the story. >> reporter: the drummers set the mood. a free book was given to hundreds of children as soon as they walked into the doors of the community college of philadelphia. for 25 years, the african-american children's book festival has celebrated african-american authors, illustrators, and characters. >> i wanted to write books that my kids might want to read and might gain knowledge from. and also books i wish had been around when i was a child. >> reporter: the event was started by vanesse lloyd-sgambati. >> i see little girls walking along and say, hey, that's a book that's going to bower me. >> reporter