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Firefighters hold up books at the Little Free Library outside the Ypsilanti Fire Department. Ann Arbor resident Kim Lazar established that library and two others in Ypsilanti, and she would like to see more people get involved in supporting the initiative that provides free books to children in their neighborhoods. (Photo provided by Kim Lazar)

ANN ARBOR, MI - When Kim Lazarz and her children starting making the rounds to add books to Little Free Libraries in Ann Arbor, she noticed a trend.

Some neighborhoods had multiple Little Free Libraries - small structures that hold books people can take for free - and others didn't have any. Lazarz saw an opportunity to contribute to the community beyond her own neighborhood, and in July 2015, she started her own Little Free Library.

She said she wanted other families to share the same experiences reading together as she enjoyed with her now-teenage sons when they were younger.

"Those were some of our favorite memories together, reading stories together," Lazarz said. "They would bring books to you and be so excited because they wanted another story. It's just such an important part of growing up."

Now, Lazarz has set up three libraries: at Arbor Meadows mobile home park in Ypsilanti, outside the Ypsilanti fire department and - most recently - by the Deborah Strong public housing complex in Ypsilanti. Lazarz also has helped two friends open their own Little Free Libraries.

There are more than 60 registered Little Free Libraries in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. Visit the Little Free Library map to see the locations.

"Putting a library in a neighborhood that does not already have one will make books more accessible and give a gift to a child," said Lazarz, an engineer who works in Dearborn and lives in Ann Arbor. "It is much easier to become a confident reader if you are read to every day from birth. It is much easier to read to your child if there are books in your home or readily accessible."

Lazarz was surprised at the demand for books from her first Little Free Library, which was placed in a neighborhood with about 200 children. She thought 100 books would keep the library stocked for a while, but they were gone within the first week.

She started scouring library book sales, thrift shops and used book stores for inexpensive books in good condition to keep her Little Free Library stocked. First Book, a national nonprofit that provides new books and other learning materials to children in need, and Children's Literacy Network, a Washtenaw County nonprofit dedicated to promoting literacy, provided her with additional resources.

"It's seeing the kids, their faces light up," Lazarz said. "They sometimes are on the playground and they'll see us restocking the library. As soon as we walk away, they'll run up and look inside, especially if they saw one of the newer popular books."

Lazarz ended up adding 30 to 50 new books to her first Little Free Library every week for 18 months in order to meet the demand of the neighborhood children. That's slowed to 10 to 15 books a week, Lazarz said, and more books are being returned now. She checks on her Little Free Libraries almost daily at first and then two or three times a week once the library is more established.

"At this point, we have lost count of how many books we have given out, but definitely over 3,500," she said.

Lazarz wants to continue adding more Little Free Libraries in the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti area, and she would like to see more people get involved in supporting the literacy initiative. People can drop off books at existing Little Free Libraries, make donations to the Children's Literacy Network with "Little Free Library project" in the memo or First Book, hold book drives to support the libraries or install their own Little Free Library.