Cedarville Community Library installed Greene County’s first StoryWalk®—a children’s book mounted along a path so you can read as you walk—in the park outside the library in May 2017.
Cedarville’s librarians keep the StoryWalk® fresh by switching the book every few months, and they’ve got it down to a science that would impress an Indy 500 pit crew.
After removing the old page from each stand, Sue and Laura, Cedarville’s Head Librarian and Youth Services Librarian, remove the two acrylic sheets that protect each page and wipe off any grass or condensation that might have found their way inside.
There are a couple of surprising pitfalls they need to protect against while they’re doing that, though. First is the wind: A heavy gust could easily blow the loose laminated book pages away. Sue learned early to bring out paperweights to prevent that.
Second is the elastic washers in each assembly that separate the pages from the acrylic to allow rainwater to drain. Those washers are tiny, which makes them easy to lose, particularly if they fall into the grassy lawn. Laura is careful to hold them or place them on a cart while cleaning the acrylic.
That done, Sue and Laura sandwich the new book’s page between the acrylic sheets and slide the whole thing into the metal stand. At first, it always seemed to require one more hand than was available, with all of the pieces that needed to be held in place while other pieces needed to be shoved. But Sue and Laura have figured out where to squeeze, hold, and push to get the pages cleanly in position. After screwing the whole assembly into place, the duo is ready to move on to the next stand.
The whole process takes about 45 minutes—less than three minutes per page. Once finished the StoryWalk® is ready for visitors to enjoy for a brand-new season.
Looking for more opportunities to enjoy stories with a good walk in the park? Check out all of Greene County Public Library's Story Trails.
The StoryWalk® Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, Vermont, and developed in collaboration with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library. StoryWalk® is a registered service mark owned by Ms. Ferguson.
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