Little Free Library Opening Marks Juneteenth Holiday In Aurora

AURORA, IL — In honor of Juneteenth, the Aurora Actionaires celebrated by opening a new little free library for the city's youth at Coach Wilbert Walters Park on Aurora's west side.

A service club for Black women in Aurora, the Aurora Actionaires collaborated with Black fraternities and sororities, as well as the city government, to open the little library, where neighborhood children can access free books "that reflect their culture and community," officials said.

After the dedication, children playing in the nearby park took their pick of books, which are free and don't need to be returned. Fraternity and sorority members will replenish books in the library weekly, officials said.

"Serving our children is paramount to making sure they're successful," one Actionaires member said during the event.

Coach Wilbert Walters, now 93, also made an "unexpected" appearance at the event to celebrate the little library now housed at his namesake park. Attendees thanked Walters, a longtime track coach in the city, and applauded the "absolute legend."

"Event organizers planned the opening for Juneteenth to stress the importance of literacy in the Black community," Clayton Muhammad, chief communications officer, wrote in a news release. "So often, slaves were prohibited from learning to read, so they couldn’t effectively communicate with each other and strategize a plan for freedom."

The little library celebration was the final Juneteeth event scheduled in Aurora over the weekend. The celebrations happened a year after Aurora City Council made history when it unanimously voted to make Juneteenth an official paid holiday for city staff.