Grand opening set for Navarre Park ‘Little Free Library’

The Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce’s 2017 Health & Expo Committee members collected books for the organization’s new Little Free Library. Pictured, from left, are Chanda Ryan, Kelley Fuller, Judy Morehead, Danielle Gillis and Susan Clark. [Special to the Press Gazette]

NAVARRE — Little Free Libraries are a global phenomenon. The small, front-yard book exchanges reportedly number 50,000 worldwide. Now, a new Little Free Library at 8543 Navarre Parkway in Navarre will join the movement to share books, bring people together and create communities of readers.

The Navarre Beach Area Chamber of Commerce will host a grand opening for its Little Free Library. The celebration, set for 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15 in Navarre Park, will include a ribbon cutting ceremony. This reportedly will be the fourth Little Free Library located in the Navarre area.

“The idea of the Little Free Library in Navarre Park came out of the Navarre Chamber's 2017 Annual Health and Business Expo, 'Celebrating a Healthy Body and Mind,’” a media release stated. “The chamber unveiled the Little Free Library at this year's Expo and invited attendees to donate books at the event. It’s our hope that this Little Free Library will bring a little more joy, a little more connection and a whole lot more books to our community.”

The Little Free Library nonprofit organization has been honored by the Library of Congress, the National Book Foundation, and the American Library Association, and Reader’s Digest named it one of the “50 Surprising Things We Love about America.”

An estimated 10 million books annually are shared in Little Free Libraries. See littlefreelibrary.org to learn more about the cause.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Grand opening set for Navarre Park ‘Little Free Library’