Bookworms will soon have access to seven new libraries in town.
The Okotoks Public Library is launching its Little Free Libraries program at the beginning of June. Five small ‘libraries’ will be placed in Town parks, one at the Okotoks Recreation Centre and one at the Okotoks Food Bank.
Little Free Libraries is funded by Family and Community Support Services (FCSS). Anyone can take a book from one of the little houses around town and replace it with one they’d like to share.
Library director Tessa Nettleton said the program is something she began thinking about in 2015, after attending a conference in Lethbridge. There the libraries were exclusively indoors, but Nettleton thought it would be nice to place them in Town parks.
“I just thought it was so cool because there are definitely people in the community who don’t get to the library because there’s no public transport, you have to have a car, or time,” said Nettleton. “And maybe they don’t have access to books in other ways, maybe they don’t have money for books.”
The Little Free Libraries will be located in the parks furthest from the library itself, to bring books to those who cannot access the Okotoks Public Library on a regular basis, she said.
The project received $5,000 from Family and Community Support Services to help build the libraries and mount them on posts.
The Okotoks Public Library and its board will stock the Little Free Libraries with donated books to begin with.
“We do get a lot of donations, so I hope we can do it this way,” said Nettleton. “We hope the community starts taking over with the ‘take one, leave one’ idea and carries it on.”
The seven Little Free Libraries were built by four different couples, and each one is completely unique, from brightly decorated walls to a log cabin.
Steve Coe, whose wife has worked for the Okotoks Public Library, built two of the libraries – including the log cabin. His daughter painted a rocket ship on the side of the second library.
A woodworker by trade, Coe is experienced making wooden toys and enjoyed building the small houses.
“I think it’s a great idea and it was a lot of fun to build,” said Coe. “We were actually thinking about putting one at our house and then this came up.”
He said they have hundreds of books in their house and they wanted to have a way to share those stories with everyone else. The libraries give them that opportunity, he said.
Coe said he expects there may be a little vandalism from time to time, but that doesn’t stop him from believing in the project.
“There are stories about them all over the world and sometimes they do get vandalized,” he said. “And if they do, we fill them with books again. It’s worth it in the long run.”
Nettleton said each Little Free Library has been assigned to a library board member who will keep an eye on it to ensure its shelves are stocked and there is no damage.
“We have a commitment to keep this running and we have some people on board who truly believe in it,” said Nettleton.
The library and the Town of Okotoks met to decide which parks would be most suitable to house Little Free Libraries and circulated letters to area residents for feedback.
Christa Michailuck, Okotoks parks manager, said it was important nearby residents were given the opportunity to raise any concerns they had with the project before the posts went in the ground.
“I would expect most residents would embrace this, but you never know, so this is an opportunity to hear from those people,” said Michailuck.
The Town will install posts in five parks for the miniature libraries in Cimarron Grove, Westmount, Sandstone, Sunshine and Drake Landing. One of the library builders will provide braces to secure each Little Free Library to its post.
“These are reasonably heavy,” said Michailuck. “I’d rather overbuild than under build, to make sure they’re secure.”
For more information visit www.okotokslibrary.ca
