Seabreeze High School teachers Alycia Severson and Agnes Ingram have been talking about their little free libraries project for years.
Ingram said it had to be more than five years back that the two, who were co-teaching at the time, dreamed it up. For one reason or another, their plans were delayed over and over. But this year — thanks to an anonymous donor who gave them a $1,000 grant through the Futures Foundation, which supports public education in Volusia County — the duo got their project off the ground.
“We were just two people on that path to wanting to do something for kids all the time,” Ingram said.
The project aims to put little free libraries — small, wooden boxes with free books inside — around Daytona Beach. The libraries work on the honor system, and house all types of books that people are free to take, read and keep if they want. They can also donate books to the libraries.
“The idea came about via a discussion a teacher and I were having over having more print-rich material for students who were living in homes that may not have access to magazines or books or just print-rich material in general,” Ingram said.
Severson said they wanted to get more kids reading by getting the books closer to them.
“I think it’s a healthy thing for kids to see, of course to read themselves, and to also see other adults reading for leisure activity.”
Severson hopes they can add a few more every year, maybe in beach parks, and Ingram hopes to see boxes in residential neighborhoods around the city.
The first three boxes can be found at the John H. Dickerson Community Center, the Midtown Cultural and Education Center, and the Yvonne Scarlett Golden Educational Center.
Ingram and Severson saw kids already taking advantage of the box outside the Dickerson Center on Wednesday.
“Right away those kids had books that they liked, they were so elated,” Ingram said. “They were beaming with pride.”
To find a similar library near you, visit littlefreelibrary.org.