After applying for, and being awarded a Neighbourhood Small Grant (we are so grateful for being selected) we were able to add a Little Free Library to help enhance and build community ties in our neighborhood!
It seemed overwhelming at first once I was rewarded the Grant, but luckily the neighborhood I live in banded together to make it possible. One lady designed it using AutoCAD and had some building supplies she donated, next we had a couple from down the road who graciously opened up their garage and built the library. I used the money to put towards the plywood and to partially compensate them for other supplies they used. Once it was built I was lucky to have my daughter in law volunteer to paint the LFL, I once again used the grant money to purchase the paint she needed. Our family donated the posts, plexiglass, concrete, sealant, caulking and bolts that were required for the library and to build the stand. I made sure to call before we dug to install the posts, and I also called the city to let them know what we were doing. I used some of the money to go to the thrift store and purchased books that I thought would be good for all ages and a variety of genres, and reached out to family and neighbours who also donated more books. I thought it might be nice to have bookmarks for people to take and reached out to a woman on FB who generously donated 18 for us to put inside. We ended up having a great turn out for the Grand Opening today with approximately 20 people in attendance, where a gave a speech thanking everyone who made this possible, and I also had made up thank you cards for the people who had helped the most and included a small gift card as a thank you.
We are all so grateful for receiving this grant, and I know it will be an amazing addition to our neighborhood. My goal was to get more people reading, and I think this will be achieved 💕
