Wesley Chapel may not have its own Pasco County Library System branch at the moment — as the renovation project at the New River Library on S.R. 54 continues — but it could soon have three Little Free Libraries.
The Wiregrass Ranch Foundation recently unveiled the first two Little Free Libraries, which are small, birdhouse-looking book depositories that allow anyone to share and read free books.
Porter was on hand to cut the ribbon at Wiregrass Ranch’s first Little Free Library ribbon cutting on July 31. It is located between the Glory Days Grill and Max’s Natural Pet Market on S.R. 54. A second location is near the Culver’s on the north side of S.R. 56, while a location for a third book-sharing box is still being determined.
“JD (Porter, who founded the foundation) and I were chatting one that we wanted to do something where the community can get involved, but doesn’t have to be together, due to Covid-19,” says Amanda Blackmon, who does marketing for the foundation. “We were looking for something new and creative, and JD said, ‘What about a Little Library?’”
When it opened, the S.R. 54 location had a selection of books ranging from To Kill a Mockingbird to some of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and even Good Morning, Moon. Users are encouraged to share their own books when taking one from the library.
“It is definitely about sharing books and bringing the community together,” Blackmon says, adding that the Wiregrass Ranch Foundation is encouraging those who are reading the Little Library books to share pictures and their thoughts on social media on Instagram at @littlefreelibrary_wc and on Facebook. “We wanted to get the conversation started,” she says.
Porter even suggested leaving notes in the books when you are done reading them, to be discovered by the next person who takes the book.
“It’s our hope that this Little Free Library will bring a little more joy, a little more connection and a whole lot more books to our community,” Porter said.
The locations in Wiregrass Ranch will be one of more than 100,000 book-sharing boxes world-wide.
Little Free Library is a nonprofit organization and received the 2020 World Literacy Award for its dedication to expanding access to books.
For more information, visit LittleFreeLibrary.org. For more info about the Wiregrass Ranch Foundation, visit WiregrassRanchFoundation.org. — JCC
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