Our Team

  • Sandy Jo Wilcox

    IF you are not willing to learn. No one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you. -Zig Ziglar

  • Loretta Adams

    “Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts”. -Winston Churchill

Sandy Jo Wilcox

I was born and raised in St. Mary’s MT, which is located on the east end of Glacier National Park. My mother owned a motel and my father worked and owned an outfitting business in the Great Bear Wilderness. I spent my youth rodeoing throughout Montana and Canada, as well as helping my mom and dad with their businesses. That is where I received the root of my hands-on education.

After high school, I rodeoed for the University of Montana-Western. My love for working with kids and enhancing their life skills is what drew me to be a teacher. I received my bachelors in Elementary Education from the College of Great Falls. I started my career teaching at Browning Public School, while raising a family of my own. 

As my children grew so did our compassion for the western way of life and we made a big move to Nevada, where I continued to enhance and cultivate their skills in the rodeo arena. My three girls all rodeoed and competed all over the United States. This is where I began to see that education went beyond the classroom walls. We eventually made the move back to Montana, where I continued teaching and once again noticing the public school system was confining my grandchild and limiting their growth. This is when I decided to get more involved in education outside of the school system.

Have Books Will Travel is a passion project that I hope will give students an opportunity to learn and grow without the confinement of a traditional classroom. 

I have seventeen years of teaching experience in reservation public schools, teaching kindergarten through sixth grade and a multi grade classroom third through sixth.  I have spent the last forty years teaching/working with an agricultural emphasis.

Sandy Jo Ray-Wilcox BA, Class 2 Standard Teaching, 31A Reading Endorsement K-12 educator license #61086

Loretta Adams

Growing up locally in the small town of Frenchtown, MT, I have been involved in the western lifestyle my entire life. At an early age, I competed in AQHA shows and also participated in the Montana High School Rodeo Association. During my college years, while working on a guest ranch, I found that my true passion was working with the children. I went on to receive a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. 

I began my career in Wickenburg, AZ, teaching 3rd & 4th grade, but Montana was calling me home. I returned to the Mission Valley and continued in the public school education system for 26 years. I chose to continue my education by receiving my masters in Curriculum and Instruction. 

During those 26 years, I raised my two amazing children and wanted to bring them up with the same Montana roots that I had, participating in various activities including dance, sports, high school rodeo, and farming. At the end of my children’s time in public education, I realized that they were learning for a degree and not a real world experience. They went on to trade schools and are both very successful in their careers. This made me understand that the public school system was lacking in preparing students with problem solving, critical thinking and communication skills. Which has brought on my new found passion starting this non-profit organization Have Books Will Travel with my dear friend whom shares similar views and values.