Over twenty-five “Spread the Word” book and magazine exchange bins are located in communities around the North Okanagan-Shuswap. Community members are encouraged to read the materials on-site or take a book or magazine home with them, and then return the reading material to any bin location.
Starting in September 2016, LASS is transitioning the “Spread the Word” book bins to Little Free Libraries to broaden our reach and make books available in more locations, including outdoor public spaces. LASS’ goal is to have 15 Little Free Libraries in the Salmon Arm area that will be maintained by our staff and volunteers. On International Literacy Day 2016 (September 8), LASS unveiled our first Little Free Library on Alexander St. in front of the LASS office (above the Salmar Classic Theatre). Read more…
We are looking for monetary donations and sponsors for these Little Free Library structures to be placed around the North Okanagan-Shuswap region. The sponsorship is a cost recovery only, as the structures, installation, and signage is quite costly. Full sponsorship ($700) includes the structure, registration, installation, and a sponsorship plaque. DIY sponsorship ($250) involves a little free library structure built/supplied by the donor (and approved by LASS Board of Directors), but we would cover installation, registration, and a sponsorship plaque.
We are trying to establish partnerships with skilled trades people who might volunteer to build our structures locally. As we do not currently have a local source for the libraries, with full sponsorship we will purchase a kit from littlefreelibrary.org and assemble ourselves. We are interested in working with groups and sponsors to get more of these structures up around the North Okanagan-Shuswap, so please contact us if you are interested in donating to this project or creating your own Little Free Library.
Thanks to a grant through the Shuswap Community Foundation, we are able to work with up to 5 Salmon Arm, Sicamous, and Sorrento area non-profits to build their own Little Free Library. LASS will support the building and installation of these libraries at their locations, along with a package of books. The non-profit will be responsible for ongoing maintenance of their library; although, we will provide books if requested. Eligible organizations will have a mission/mandate to support children and families in the area and will not have literacy as part of their mandate. The application will be available on this page soon.
Please contact Thomas by email or phone if you are interested in this program.