DLIT Announces Little Libraries Celebration Party

Over the past few months, a number of the little mini lending libraries have been installed across town. The non-­‐profit library advocacy group Dedham Library Innovation Team (D‐LIT) is now hosting a celebration of its Dedham Little Free Project on Thursday, November 12th at the Paradise Cafe in Dedham Square. The event is free and open to the public, featuring light refreshments and a cash bar, as well as a chance to meet the artist who painted the libraries and see some of the next libraries scheduled for installation in various town locations.

DLIT will be recognizing and honoring the many people who helped plan, design, build, paint, install and promote the 10 little libraries which are being installed across town with the generous assistance of DPW Director Joe Flanagan and his team - including artists from Dedham High School and community artists from Dedham Square Artist Guild.

Special recognition will be given to State Representative Paul McMurtry and Dedham Housing Authority’s Joanne Toomey, who worked with the DHA Board of Directors, staff, families, National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials, and Massachusetts Chapter of NAHRO to bring some of the little libraries to DHA housing complexes, in Toomey’s words, “to promote literacy and the love of reading to our kids living in public housing.”

DLIT will also be announcing the winners of its 2015 Grant Awards, which serve to promote innovation in our school and public libraries.

##

ABOUT LITTLE FREE LIBRARIES: The Little Free Library Project was originally founded byTodd Bol. Bol designed the first “little library” built on a post as a tribute to his mother, who was a book lover and schoolteacher. As the concept spread, the goal was the creation of 2,150 Little Libraries, which would surpass the number of libraries founded by Andrew Carnegie. The mission of the Little Free Library movement is to: • Promote literacy and the love of reading by building free book exchanges worldwide. • Foster a sense of community and connection as we share skills, creativity and wisdom across generations. To learn more, explore the project’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/dedhamlittlefreelibrary.

ABOUT DLIT: A registered 501 c3 non-­‐profit organization, The Dedham Library Innovation Team is an open and welcoming community group of those who understand the increasingly critical value of today’s modern library. To that end, the group is committed to creating collaborative, positive partnerships between the libraries, schools, public officials, businesses, and residents in order to support the strategic vision and development of a best-­in‐class, vibrant public library system in Dedham, MA. For more information, follow the group on Twitter at @DLIT_Dedham, check out the group’s Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/DedhamLibraryInnovationTea.