Little Free Libraries

The importance of youth literacy cannot be overstated. It opens doors, lays the groundwork for learning, helps teach critical thinking, develops communication skills, and empowers young people.  

CU Kiwanis supports youth literacy in a number of ways, and by building and maintaining Little Free Libraries, we help get books to kids in our community. 

We installed our first Little Free Library (LFL) in 2020 and now have 8 in the area. In addition to the traditional outdoor LFLs mounted on posts, we also have bookshelves inside community centers like laundromats, housing authority offices, and sports facilities. These high-traffic areas allow easy access of books to parents and kids.

The United Way of Champaign County provides space to process and store books prior to distribution. Since we distribute over 2,000 gently used books annually, we’re incredibly thankful for their partnership. 

In November 2023, twenty former Westview School teachers, friends, and Kiwanians gathered at the school in Champaign for the dedication of our club’s latest Little Free Library. The LFL honors Jean A. Breeze, a beloved Westview kindergarten teacher and sister of Kiwanian Clark Breeze.

For Kiwanians: how to get involved

Time commitment:

• Work happens throughout the year
• Up to 18 hours annually, including distributing books ~5 times a year

Currently five members distribute books to these sites where each person is responsible for at least one site visit during a two-week period. With the current rotation, each person distributes books about five times annually. Adding more volunteers would allow this program to expand even more.

We receive, sort, label, and store books prior to distribution in the basement of the United Way of Champaign County, 5 Dunlap Ct, Savoy, IL 61874. A Kiwanis LFL book label is placed inside the front cover of each book distributed. The cost of printing these custom book labels is our only significant expense.

We generally meet about four times annually for about 2 hours to receive and process books. It takes less than 2 hours per rotation to deliver books to the 8 sites. In total, Kiwanis volunteers involved in this project serve for no more than 18 hours annually.