The Leonardtown Rotary Club, in partnership with the Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative (SMECO) and St. Mary’s County Library, announced the upcoming launch of storywalks at Leonardtown and Charlotte Hall libraries, set to open on May 11, 2024. These unique installations feature a series of reading stations along accessible paths, where pages from children’s picture books are displayed for families to enjoy an interactive reading experience.
Located in scenic areas, one storywalk is placed by a garden in front of the Leonardtown Library, and the other aligns with the multi-use county trail near Charlotte Hall Library. Each storywalk extends about 100 yards and features flat terrain, making it an easy and enjoyable outing for young readers and their families.
Library Director Michael Blackwell expressed his gratitude for the financial and logistical support received from the Leonardtown Rotary and SMECO. The Rotary contributed $10,000, matched by Rotary District 7620, to fund this project. “I’m so very grateful to Rotary for the funding for this project,” Blackwell said. He also praised the physical labor contributed by SMECO, noting, “They made the heavy work of the post installations go quickly and smoothly, saving lots of back-breaking labor. They are great community partners!”
The storywalks are designed to be weather-resistant, ensuring that the book pages are protected and the experience can be enjoyed year-round. This project aligns with Rotary’s commitment to supporting education, as noted by Barbara Thompson, President of the Leonardtown Rotary Foundation. “We are delighted to work with the library to help foster life-long learning from an early age on,” Thompson stated.
SMECO’s involvement underscores its ongoing dedication to educational initiatives in the region. Sonja Cox, President and CEO of SMECO, commented on the cooperative’s role: “SMECO was happy to lend its equipment and the skills of its outdoor workers to build the storywalk. The cooperative has a long tradition of supporting education in Southern Maryland, and the project will ensure that libraries are places of learning both outside and in.”
The storywalks aim to combine physical activity with literacy, encouraging children and their families to engage in reading while enjoying the outdoors. This initiative reflects a community-wide effort to enhance educational resources and promote early childhood literacy through innovative and accessible means.
