It’s summer, time to lie on a beach or sit in your backyard and read a book! But what if you don’t have a book to read? Today’s Feel Good Friday organization, Little Free Library, has you covered.
Little Free Library is a neighborhood book exchange that began in Wisconsin in 2009 when Todd Bol built a model of a one room schoolhouse, put it on a post in his yard and filled it with books. The idea and the libraries spread and Little Free Library became a registered nonprofit organization in 2012. Their mission is “to be a catalyst for building community, inspiring readers, and expanding book access for all through a global network of volunteer-led Little Free Libraries.” Their tag line, “Take a Book. Share a Book.”
The reason the organization focuses on book access is explained on their website. “Today in the United States, more than 30 million adults cannot read or write above a third-grade level. Studies have repeatedly shown that books in the hands of children have a meaningful impact on improving literacy. The more books in or near the home, the more likely a child will learn and love to read. But two out of three children living in poverty have no books to call their own.”If you want to find a Little Free Library in your neighborhood, use this map. There are now libraries in all 50 states and on all 7 continents. Over 100,000 libraries in all with 42 million books shared annually. The impact of these libraries is highlighted on the website: “72% of volunteer stewards have met more neighbors because of their Little Free Library” and “92% of people say their neighborhood feels like a friendlier place because of a Little Free Library.” All that and free books too!
If you’d like to support the work of Little Free Library there are many ways to do so. Start a library in your neighborhood, make a donation, and amplify their work on social media by liking their Facebook page and following them on Twitter @LtlFreeLibrary and Instagram @littlefreelibrary.
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