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Home My WebLink About06-20-14 Press Release - Get Booked Huts U5 ; , - - , NEWS RELEASE Date Friday, June 20, 2014 @ 4:15 pm From: Council Member at Large Derek D. Dieter South Bend City Council Vice-President GET BOOKED HUTS Today at 4:15pm a PRESS CONFERENCE will be held at the corner of Monroe and Columbia to announce the expansion of the GET BOOKED program. South Bend City Council Vice President Derek Dieter and I" District Council Member Tim Scott will meet with two Monroe Park residents, Jenni Bell and Mike Coman who built a free standing book but in their neighborhood. The but is stocked with books for community use. The concept of"Drop a Book-Take a Book" mirrors a program that originated in Wisconsin, called The Little Free Library. What is a Little Free Library? It's a "take a book, return a book" gathering place where neighbors share their favorite literature and stories. In its most basic form, a Little Free Library is a box full of books where anyone may stop by and pick up a book (or two) and bring back another book to share. The combination of the Health and Public Safety Committee, along with the Residential Neighborhood Committee chaired by Karen White, and Tim Scott will begin a pilot program in South Bend for the HUTS. Barb Coyle of Better World book will supply the initial books needed to stock the HUTS and the flow of books will be monitor by Council Members Scott and Dieter. The pilot program will begin in City Parks on the northwest side of the city - Leeper, Muessel, Keller, Freemont, and Triangle Park. Scott and Dieter will then look to expand this program near community gardens, and other neighborhood based meeting places. Council Members Scott and Dieter are asking community groups, citizens, and anyone else who want to get involved to build a HUT. Sizes and design may vary and more information on building the HUTS can be found under the Little Free Library Web site: htlp://Iittlefreelibrary.or tJ To Get Involved email . ddietergsouthbendin.gov or tscott@southbendin.gov. Our History - Little Free Library Page 1 of 3 Home About ' BUY Stewards&Friends Get Involved GIVE Make It Official j Map Bing Contact j 'Search Us . I I ..................-.: The History of Little Free Library The People Who Started the Movement In the beginning-2009-Todd Bol of Hudson,Wisconsin,built a model of a one room schoolhouse as a tribute to his mother,a former school teacher who loved reading. He filled it with books and put it on a post in his front yard. His neighbors and friends loved it. He built several more and gave them away. Each one had a sign that said FREE BOOKS. Rick Brooks,of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, saw Bol's do-it-yourself project while they were discussing potential social enterprises.Together,the two saw opportunities to achieve a wide variety of goals for the common good. Each brought different skills to the effort,Bol as a creative craftsman experienced with innovative enterprise models and Brooks as a youth and community development educator with a background in social marketing. They were inspired by many different ideas: The very first Little Flee Librmy • Andrew Carnegie's Support of 2,509 free public libraries around the turn built by Todd in honor of his mother. of the 19m to 20ih century. • The heroic achievements of Miss Lane Stearns,a librarian who brought books to nearly 1400 locations in Wisconsin through"traveling little libraries"between 1595 and 1914. • "Take a book,leave a book"collections in coffee shops and public spaces. • Neighborhood kiosks,TimeBanking and community gift-sharing networks • Grassroots empowerment movements in Sri Lanka,India and other countries worldwide. Growth and New Ideas. By the summer of 2010 the mission and purposes served by the little boxes of books were becoming more clear. The original models had all been built with recycled materials. Each was unique but all shared the theme of exchanging good books and bringing people together for something positive. The names"Habitat for the Humanities,"`House of Stories"soon gave way to what more and more people called Little Free Libraries. Early adopters of this little innovation http://Iittlefreelibrary.org/ourhistory/ 6/19/2014 Our History - Little Free Library Page 2 of 3 became key connectors with friends and supporters. Their role as stewards were critical to the movement's growing success. Our Mission • To promote literacy and the love of reading by building free book exchanges worldwide. ' To build a sense of community as we share skills, •Dr.Tanq Saleem Mamm,a - Little Free Library champion creativity and wisdom across generations. in Pakistan Our Goal = To build 2,510 Little Free Libraries—as many as Andrew Carnegie—and keep going.* Key Strategies Promotion of reading for children,literacy for adults and libraries around the world. With no start-up or operating capital,no office or paid staff,the concept was evolving into an enterprise reaching communities far beyond a front yard next to the St.Croix River in Hudson. The first official little Free Library outside the Hudson area was posted by a bike path behind the Absolutely Art Gallery and CaM Zoma on the east side of Madison in the summer of 2010. By the time of the Willy Street Fair in September,thousands of people had seen the Absolutely Art Library. The process of giving away Bol's creations began to require a way to cover expenses to build many more than he could handle by himself. Amish carpenter Henry Miller of rural Cashton,Wisconsin became the primary craftsman,using wood recycled from a 100 year-old barn destroyed in a tornado. Giving away Little Libraries and hand-crafted signs with official Little Free Library charter numbers began to generate curiosity and`word of mouth"story - sharing.The www.littlefreelibrary.org website and a loyal cadre of volunteers - made it possible to expand the organizational reach beyond the co-founders. The movement centered around the enthusiasm and commitment of stewards who hosted and often built their own neighborhood Libraries. Some small Thousands of hooks haae passed through grants,informal partnerships and alliances began to have an impact on Little this Little Free Library outside of Indie Free Library's ability to keep up with demand. Coffee in Madison,WI. And the rest..is history,documented in newspapers,blogs and broadcasts ' sc=t.;n., "' -- throughout the world. The year 2011 brought local,regional and national media - - attention to the backyard project that had become a movement. With nearly 400 Little Free Libraries across the U.S.by the end of the year,the founders knew it was time to become a formal,independent organization. In May,2012,Little - •- Free Library was officially established as a Wisconsin nonprofit corporation ...' with a board of directors. In September,the Internal Revenue Service granted - tax-exempt status. *This goal was reached in August of 2012,a year and a half before our original target date. By January of 2014,the total number of registered Little Free . Libraries in the world was conservatively estimated to be nearly 15,000,with thousands more being built. Aboni I Ste wards&rFriends Gel Involved GIVE tact It official Little Free Library g I et l.v li alog Contact http://Iittlefreelibrary.org/ourhistory/ 6/19/2014 Y 1 r^ 4 , , • II r M ffAr o, eAk or 4t gr NX TL ,'a ► . .rte " .,..t= MY aj. f 1 cp d co 4 1f I; Y rt r e 4i t.: t. ! Ft fi a Ay Cr IL 7JL;E h d�WOO w F ,, LE1 0A . + �. F F,. CD 1� S- i.