Youth Services Shout-Out: YSS Blog: Campfire Story Walk- Creating Community Fun

The following fun idea is from the WLVS (WI Valley Library Service) January 2021 newsletter, edited by Jamie Matczak.

Because March is National Reading Month, the Demmer Memorial Library in Three Lakes celebrated by having a Story Walk™ Campfire in their back parking lot on Thursday, March 4. The event took place from 3:30 until 6:00 p.m.

“Time spent outside is important for growth, development, and mental health, as is reading together as a family,” said children’s librarian Charlotte Horant. “A Story Walk is the perfect way to combine both."

Previously, the library, with the help of local volunteers and businesses, had staged story walks along a local park and around the library building. Story Walks consist of book pages placed in windows or laminated for outdoors and set up in outside locations.

Eventually, the Story Walk will continue through downtown Three Lakes.

On March 4, families were encouraged to do the Story Walk and then meet back at the library to roast a marshmallow and have some hot chocolate at the outdoor fire pit. “There were 60 people who attended the event,” director Erica Brewster said. “We had great weather, and families were thrilled to have something to do outside. "I overheard some families near the Story Walk having a great time," she said.

For more information on this program, contact Erica Brewster at director@demmerlibrary.org.