Dionne Lanqvist has a new vision for Centennial Park.
She envisions kids curling up on a picnic bench or a soft patch of grass with a good book, and then sharing that book with others once they’re done.
At least that’s what she would like to see once the Little Library is installed at the inner-city park in less than a month.
The lending library is a project of the 1st Campbell River Brownies Troop that meets out of Cedar Elementary once a week.
Troop leader Lanqvist, and co-leader, Melinda Gaberel, who is also the principal of Cedar school, came up with the concept as a way to promote literacy.
“The focus in January was Family Literacy Week but due to the snow we didn’t get it done in time,” Lanqvist says. The inspiration to put it in Centennial Park came out of a desire to do a community project with the Brownies, a group of 7-to-9-year-olds.
“I think there may be one or two lending libraries in the community but they’re more adult-oriented,” Lanqvist says. “We wanted a child-focused one for children’s books. Being at the park, we thought ‘what better place.'”
Centennial Park’s proximity to Cedar school also made the location an obvious fit.
“Our goal is to have the Brownies walk down and help maintain it, make sure it’s not vandalized,” Lanqvist says.
The Little Library, which was made courtesy of Gaberel Woodworking, is slated to be unveiled on April 8 in Centennial Park just off the gravel pathway near the concession.
Lanqvist says the library is meant to be an avenue for sharing with others, a concept that leaders try to instill in the 19-member Brownie group.
“The concept is you bring a book that you’re done with and you take a book that’s in there,” Lanqvist says. “Basically it’s a take a book, leave a book idea. It’s also a good way to recycle. Especially for children’s books, because they outgrow them so quickly.”
She says that with the library, the kids can read a book in the park, finish it, and put it back. Or, if they’d like to take the book home, they can do that too. The library will be filled with books by the Brownies on the day of the unveiling, but after that, the hope is that the community will really embrace the Little Library and keep it full with books of their own.
