(FREE) Small, But Mighty!: Little Libraries Offer Free Books in Ponca City
Story & Photos by Alexia Smith | Staff Writer
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The first-ever Free Little Library was built in 2009 in Hudson, Wisconsin. Today, there are over 150,000 that have registered across the globe, touching all 50 states, 120 countries, and seven continents.
Here in Ponca City, we have a little over 10 of these libraries, some older than 10 years old, run by people who want to help the community and support the advantages of reading. Having these available in neighborhoods allows people who can’t always get to the public library, whether they are children who can’t be unsupervised for a long time or the older generation who can’t walk as far. These also allow people to share their experiences, the excitement that they felt disappearing into the world that was written before them. The motto of the Free Little Library is to ‘take a book, leave a book,’ but we know some people don’t have books to give, so it has developed into something more – a way to help people have access to books and learning without having to give something in return that they don’t have.
It’s not just books that make their way into these libraries, people put puzzles, coloring books and games in them, giving others more to do in the wintertime or on rainy days. Sue Boettcher tries hard to keep these other items within her library while keeping it full of books, saying it brings her joy every time she sees someone reaching in there, regardless of whether it is a book or not. Sue and her husband, Fred, started loving the Free Little Library a little over 10 years ago when they received it as a gift from their children, and Sue has been devoted to it ever since.
Another community patron, Angela McReynolds, is also a proud owner of a Free Little Library. She hand-built hers four years ago, and it is popular throughout her neighborhood. Her love for reading pairs perfectly with a personal library just right out front, keeping a well-stocked kids’ section, along along with romance, fantasy and more serious books.
An interesting fact and more common theme I’ve learned from this group is everyone who owns one of these helpful libraries experiences the ‘Book Fairy.’ A lady who’s earned this name from emptying people’s Libraries and completely replacing them, keeping them all in a full rotation so as to never get stuck with the same books. She’s one of the few who knows where all the Free Little Libraries are around town, but no one knows who she is. She comes and goes, leaving new books in place of old ones -- a very Book Fairy thing to do.
If you’re interested in getting your own Free Little Library, you can simply register through their website littlefreelibrary.org and pick from their most elegant to a simple cottage for your new addition. If you don’t want to register or buy from them, they are available for purchase on Amazon or you can build your own, adding your own unique style. You don’t need permission from the city or permits and if you need help getting started with books, Ponca City Library sells a bag of books for a dollar, or you can donate books to the libraries, helping them grow and add new reads.
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