PLEASANT GROVE, Utah (ABC4 News) – For some high school students, this extra time at home means more time on the video games, perhaps picking up a few extra hours at work if their job is still intact.
Safety guidelines from state and national health officials due to the COVID-19 pandemic recommend distancing from mass crowds and staying home if possible to prevent further spread of the virus.
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With all the mandates of staying home, staying safe, it doesn’t take long for boredom to set in. 16-year-old Zamari Dye and 15-year-old Shyann Mayne both students at Pleasant Grove High School decided to use the time in quarantine to build a mini library. Mother, Angela Dye, told ABC4.com, “The two friends wanted to do something fun, and memorable while experiencing this pandemic.” Dye said they’ve seen mini libraries on social media and was inspired by a page they came across on Pinterest.
Zamari and Shayann also discovered mini libraries are quite popular around world. In fact many are registered on the World Map. Travelers can find a mini library while visiting a state by searching littlefreelibrary.org. Visitors usually will sign the registry book with their name, date of the visit and state they’re from. They can also check out a book or donate one.
As for the two Pleasant Grove teens, they named their new mini library Apple Grove Community Library, and yes it’s also registered on the World Map. Angela Dye who is the mother of 16-year-old Zamari said, “The library is filled with books, that many have donated, and it’s open to anyone who wants to stop by to take a book, or leave one. But please honor social distancing, wash their hands and obey health official guidelines.”
Dye said the process was fairly easy to get the little library registered, and it took the girls about two weeks to complete the project after getting gathering the items needed and watching an instructional video on how to build the mini library.
Both girls say they’re excited the project turned out so great and happy to do something positive despite the crisis our nation currently faces.
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If you are interested in visiting the Apple Grove Community Library, you can find the information at littlefreelibrary.org then search registry number 100140, the site will give you map coordinates for this and other little libraries.
