Building A Community Through Books Around The Block

The logo Of Lily Thompson and Sophie Parker's Passion Project that strives to create a community of young readers through the installation of Little Libraries. “I was inspired by seeing how limited access to books can be for some kids in our community, " said Parker. “I wanted to create something that encourages reading outside of school. Little free libraries felt like an easy way to make books more accessible.” Photo Creds: Lily Thompson

Roz Rabinowitz, Junior Editor of The Powderhorn

Childhood nostalgia from neighborhood walks always included a stop at a special spot: a Little Library. These libraries have been present in neighborhoods since we were younger, and allowed children, adults, and anyone in between to take a book from this library as long as they brought one of their own books back. These spots helped increase the amount of young kids reading, formed a community of readers, and provided a bit of joy in dark times. Sophie Parker and Lily Thompson have grown up with these little libraries and have fond memories of bringing a book with them on walks to exchange for a new one. Unfortunately, many of these libraries were lost during Hurricane Helene, making them sparse throughout Watauga. Parker and Thompson were distraught at the loss of these libraries, sparking the idea for their project: Books Around the Block.

“We were inspired by the hurricane because we went to RYLA (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) camp right after the hurricane, so we were seeing a bunch of things about surviving communities,” said Thompson. “We lost a lot of the little libraries in the hurricane. They're not as popular anymore, so we wanted to be able to bring them back, especially in our small town.”

While Hurricane Helene provided an opportunity for Thompson and Parker to pursue this passion, access to reading books has always been an issue Parker has noticed in Watauga. Parker noticed how free access to reading books outside of school was slim, meaning students were not receiving reading material during the summer and school breaks. But the Little Libraries helped provide free access to books on the doorstep of students around the county all year long. 

“We hope to foster a love for reading and create a sense of community,” said Parker. “For kids especially, we want books to feel accessible, fun, and not limited to a classroom.”

This dream of Thompson and Parker’s would not be possible without the help of RYLA, an Interact-based camp that focuses on community service and getting involved. RYLA provided them with a $500  grant to get all of the supplies for this project, but it also provided both Thompson and Parker with much more.

“At RYLA, we were challenged to turn an idea into a real project, so Lily and I started by identifying a need in our community. We then applied for the grant with the goal of making that idea realistic but also impactful,” said Parker. “RYLA helped me gain confidence in leadership and project planning, especially when it came to turning ideas into action. Interact has given me experience with service projects and teamwork, which made this process feel more manageable.”

With the help of RYLA, Thompson and Parker want to restore the Little Libraries in Watauga County, but they aren't just putting these libraries up; they are creating community while doing so. 

“The project is little libraries that we're putting up, but the twist on it is that kids help contribute to the process. So we'll have events where we set it up, where the kids will help, not necessarily construct them, but put them in their place, paint them, put decorations around them, plants around them, make them look nice, and contribute their own books to them,” said Thompson. “Then if they're walking downtown with their grandparents or their parents, they can say that they have a part in the community, just like the rest of us.”

Thompson and Parker have ordered all of their materials to build their libraries, and hope to start having assembly days towards the end of the school year when it is warmer. They have also gotten approval from the Town Council for their first one to go in at the Jones House. They have used the Interact club, Rotary, and their Instagram account @books_aroundtheblock to spread the word about their project and gain support. This project is important to Parker and Thompson because it deals with something they care about: reading. Both Thompson and Parker are avid readers and want to spread the joy of reading to others. 

“I suggest getting involved in something that is connected with the community. There are obviously things that you can do to volunteer for yourself. Like, I volunteer at an assisted living place for myself, but if you can find something you're really passionate about, obviously, Sophie and I love to read. So that's why we wanted to do this," said Thompson. “But, if we were going to do something with video games, it would be kind of useless because we wouldn't actually care about it. That's why it's called a passion project. I'd recommend that you actually care about what you're trying to put out into the community and involve yourself outside of the school, because it actually helps a lot more and broadens your horizons.”