“It’s important that we make that community connection through different projects,” said Heidi Roth, primary instructor at the day-hab center, which serves approximately 20 people with disabilities. “This winter, I saw pictures of these kinds of libraries on Facebook, and I thought it would be a great project for us.”

Online research led Roth to LittleFreeLibrary.org, where she learned about the worldwide book-sharing organization that is now celebrating 10 years of providing 24/7 access to free books. She shared photos of multiple little libraries with Emmett O’Brian, the facilities technician whose handiwork can be seen throughout the building.

“I’ve never made anything like this before,” O’Brian said, “but it was a really fun project to work on.” Throughout the winter months, O’Brian took advantage of snowy, cold weather to work on building the library, including the intricate carving at the top. He also outfitted the library with a solar light so that visitors can see and access the library books at night. The library is secured with a latch that does not lock, so anyone can access the books — either to borrow or donate — any time.

Roth registered the library with LittleFreeLibrary.org, which assigns a charter number to each little library in the world. Visitors can search the website by location or charter number to locate little libraries near them, anywhere in the world.

OBSERVER Photos by Mary Heyl. On Monday, staff of People Inc. in Silver Creek installed a Little Library for community members to borrow and contribute books. Pictured, from left, are Emmett O’Brian, facilities technician and builder of the library; Courtney Pawlak, primary instructor; Heidi Roth, primary instructor; Sarah Kestler, primary instructor; and Amber Ziolkowski, senior day supervisor.

“We all brought some books in, and we had some donated from higher-ups in our organization,” Roth explained. “Anyone is welcome to take or leave a book from the little library.”

Primary Instructor Courtney Pawlak explained that there are books for all ages, and the beauty of the system is that there are no due dates or restrictions. “You can keep the book for a period of time, as long as you need it. I think this is really special for families with young children who can get really attached to books they love reading! This way, they don’t have to give them back after two weeks,” Pawlak pointed out. “They can keep reading them until they’re ready to move on to another book.”

Roth is excited about the library’s potential and how meaningful it is to the individuals she teaches at People Inc. “They’ve been helping us make bookmarks and were really excited to see how it’s being installed outside,” she said. “We like to engage them with the community, and this is a great way to bring the community to us. Plus, it doesn’t depend on us being open or here to staff it. By it being installed on the fence, the public can access it any time.”

Roth’s hope is that the little library will be utilized often and that people who don’t have easy access to books enjoy it. “You don’t have to worry about due dates or late fees. This little library is never closed,” Roth added.

Visit LittleFreeLibrary.org, or stop by Silver Creek’s new little library at 17 Park Place to enjoy a great book or contribute a few of your own.