At the end of last month, Winston-Salem resident Sarah Maxey asked for $175 through Kickstarter, a digital funding platform for creative projects, in order to start a Little Free Library. These libraries are freestanding structures placed, well, anywhere: a local Y, a park, greenway, neighborhood, coffee shop,
and stocked with special books that are free to the public. The hope is that those who take, will eventually return either the same book, or another meaningful one.
Sarah knew people were interested in her project, but she never thought that just 20 days after she posted the idea, she'd have over 9,000 dollars in donations. The community supporting her project is made up of people from around the world. Sarah wants to honor the donations she's received, and is now thinking past the local to ideas at the state, national and even international levels. She's looking at setting up Little Free Libraries in places such as Nashville, North Carolina, Sunset Beach and other areas in the eastern part of the state, and she's also talking to a community in Brooklyn. Their public library was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy, and it is unknown whether it will be rebuilt as the area is now high-risk for new construction. Sarah, along with this community in Brooklyn, believes they are great candidates for a Little Free Library. Maxey is also looking at partnering with Books for Africa.
There are 10 more days to donate to Sarah's project, and now she's looking for individuals to adopt and be stewards for the libraries that will be built; Sarah won't know just how many until funding stops at the end of the month. If you have an idea for a location for a Little Free Library, or ideas for books you'd like to see in a Little Free Library, visit us on our Facebook page and share!
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