These Books Are Made For Reading

FARMINGTON TEACHER HOPES TO PASS ON LOVE OF READING

FARMINGTON — Lynch Middle School teacher Kendy Skrocki knows the importance of reading at a young age and wants to put books in the hands of children this summer.

She is making books available to children in Farmington in two different ways: a wooden box filled with free books and a neighborhood bookmobile.

A Little Library has been installed in front of Folsom Elementary School (behind the Walmart Neighborhood Market on Main Street) and books are free for children to take home and keep to build their own home library.

Skrocki, who teaches sixth-grade reading, said research shows books are a deciding factor in a child’s development.

“I’m all about literacy,” Skrocki said. “I want kids to have access to books.”

She gives credit for the Little Library idea to her husband’s cousin, who donated two boxes of books to Skrocki at Christmas. The Little Library is in honor of this cousin’s mom, who loved to read.

“She had seven kids who grew up to be wonderful readers because of their mom,” Skrocki said.

Shannon Cantrell, principal at

at Folsom, was open to the idea of having the library box at her school. Volunteers with Prairie Grove Christian Church installed the box as a community service project. Rachel Stump, library director for Farmington Public Library, also helped to support the project.

Children are welcome to keep the books from the Little Library or they can bring them back to swap for new books. People also can donate children’s books to the box.

This is the third summer Skrocki has driven her cream-colored Mini Cooper around as a neighborhood bookmobile. She calls her bookmobile, a “Little Free Library on Wheels.” She also hands out candy to children for fun.

Makayah Lorenz cares for several children in her home and last week, the children looked through Skocki’s books to find some to read.

“I absolutely love this,” Lorenz said. This is the second summer her children have used the library on wheels.

Her son, Kaiden Lorenz, loves to read and selected two books from Skrocki’s stockpile. His favorite books are Bible stories, Kaiden said.

Skrocki plans to drive through Farmington neighborhoods throughout the summer. She wants the bookmobile to be a fun experience for children and hopes to help children have a positive association with reading.

Watch for her Mini Cooper. It’s the one with a speaker playing loud ice-cream type music.

LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER Madalyn Gardenhire, 14, helps her younger sister, Piper, 7, find some books to take home to read from the Little Library, a box filled with free books. The box is located in front of Folsom Elementary School in Farmington.

LYNN KUTTER ENTERPRISE-LEADER Makayah Lorenz, left, and her children, Kaidin, 7, and Devon, 4, pick out books to keep from Kendy Schrocki’s personal bookmobile. Schrocki and her cream-colored Mini Cooper can be seen in Farmington neighborhoods this summer.