the BEACON Newspaper, Indiana beacon6-18 | Page 5

June 2018 THE BEACON Page 5A A Community Affair for Reading- Take a Book, Leave a Book Using materials donated by the Hidden Valley Lake Property Owners Association, Rick Baumgartner builds another Little Free Library. Photo by Jenna Baumgartner. Enthusiastic readers and good friends, Emily Geglein and Amber Griffin choose books and discover new authors together. Photo by Tracy Geglein. Continued from page 4A songwriter Jim Gill finishes his program on June 13th. It’s easy to become a Friend of Hoosier Literacy, a membership opportunity that is similar to Friends of the Library. According to Mrs. Priebe, the idea came from Donna Marple. “So as not to be confused with the Friends of the Library, we’re doing our main thrust as far as mailings this summer, but wherever we see an opportu- nity, we mention it … There’s an online form, and we have paper forms here at the Law- renceburg Library that they can drop off or mail.” Little Free Libraries (LFL), too, promote literacy. It all began with one man in Wis- consin building a miniature one-room schoolhouse filled with books free for anyone to take, in memory of his mother, a teacher and avid reader. Like the books found inside, Todd Bol’s and Rick Brooks’ initial idea has been passed from reader to reader, growing to more than 4,000 Little Free Libraries all over the world. Jenna Baumgartner, Vice President of Hoosier Hills Literacy League, and her husband Rick are Friends of Hoosier Literacy. They are stewards of the two Little Free Libraries they built in Hidden Valley Lake. In an email, Mrs. Baumgartner writes, “I love the “Take a book - Leave a book” concept. The LFL is a great way to share the joy of reading. Sometimes you read a book, and you love it so much you just have to pass it along.” Mrs. Baumgartner explains, “Being a steward is a simple task. I just stop by the LFL and straighten the books every couple of months. They really take care of themselves as patrons take a book and leave a book. If you are just walk- ing by and you don’t have a book to leave, feel free to take a book or two anyway. One thing I ask is that patrons not overfill the library. Just plac- ing one or two books in the LFL is sufficient. “Lots of people have LFLs in their front lawns. They make great family projects. You can design, build or buy your own. Pinterest has lots of ideas. If you want to have your library chartered and on the world map, visit https:// littlefreelibrary.org/ .” Dearborn County’s Little Free Libraries can also be found in Lawrenceburg near Trinity Episcopal Church and at the Community Garden, as well as inside the Aurora Community Center. In Jefferson County, the public is invited to sponsor a LFL for a one-time $100 donation. Mrs. Geglein says, “We will actually have 25 placed around the county when we’re finished … we have them at different busi- nesses and homes, not-for- profits and schools. Our goal is to get them out where people don’t have access to books.” For every family with young children, the Imagination Library continues to nurture literacy. Mrs. Priebe says, “One of the things that make it so unique is that there are no income requirements, so it’s not targeting any specific demographic. Children from the time they’re born until their fifth birthday can receive a new book in the mail that’s specially selected for their age. All that is necessary is to register through the library. It’s also possible to give a gift to the Imagination Library in honor of a teacher at the end of the school year, or a family member instead of flowers or yet another tie. That person will receive a card letting them know they’ve been remem- bered in a meaningful way. Mrs. Priebe describes an intergenerational literacy proj- ect currently being developed: “There’s a program called Storied Lives … designed to give service-oriented high school seniors who like to write an opportunity to connect with seniors in the community. It has a list of questions and is structured as a six- to ten-week program … What they end up publish- ing is a bound booklet. There are samples on their website where you can see where the young person’s perspec- tive, their voice kind of came through; where they use their personality and their voice to write about what their senior partner experienced, and some that are more narrative … It’s a relatively short, compact, doable thing. “It’s on my dream list, and I’ve gotten permission from the Board to pursue it. It doesn’t cost any money, just my time. My investment would be selling the idea, bringing together the partners, and watching it happen.” Mrs. Priebe would also like to develop a picture diction- ary for English language learners wherein photographs taken of local places would be matched with applicable vocabulary words. When individuals champion literacy, entire communities benefit through saved public funds, enriched work forces, and improved life for families. For more information, please visit: http://www.hoosierhillslit- eracyleague.net/home.html http://www.rivervalleyre- sources.com/Services/Educa- tionandTraining/AdultEduca- tion.aspx https://littlefreelibrary.org/ * saturday ** * JULY 28, 2018 * eyton’s Big P D nd SATURDAY 07 28 1 8 THANKS TO OUR PRIME SPONSORS: Rural Alliance for theArts OUR ADVERTISERS ARE YOUR NEIGHBORS. SHOP LOCAL AND TELL THEM YOU SAW THEIR ADS IN THE BEACON.