Monroe County Public Library unveils new StoryWalk near Southwest Branch

The Monroe County Public Library unveiled a new installation of its StoryWalk project Friday at RCA Community Park. 

StoryWalk is an initiative created by the Kellogg-Hubbard Library in Montpelier, Vermont, that involves staging pages of a children’s book along walking paths in local parks. MCPL introduced its own take on the project in 2017, which followed the same model. Park visitors can walk along the path and read each page as they go. 

Monroe County has three StoryWalk locations. Flatwoods Park, the county’s first installation, is north of Bloomington in Gosport, Indiana. The Flatwoods Park walk is operated in collaboration with the Monroe County Parks and Recreation Department. 

The other two walks at Rev. Ernest D. Butler Park and RCA Community Park are both located in Bloomington and operated in partnership with the City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation department. 

RCA Community Park’s walking path features “At the End of the Day” by Lisl H. Detlefsen as its first story. Featured books are chosen by MCPL and switched out once or twice a year, according to MCPL communications and marketing director Tori Lawhorn. 

Lawhorn said the library picks books based on “universal interest” and whether each spread could stand on its own. “At the End of the Day” is a story book published in April 2024 about a family settling down in their home after a busy day of activities. The path, which is around 500 feet long, features 16 panels with spreads from the book encased in glass.  

StoryWalk installations in Monroe County are funded by the Carol R. Nicholas Endowment, which is part of the MCPL Foundation’s Friends of the Library program. The Friends of the Library program collects donations in support of MCPL. The most recent StoryWalk cost $10,145 out of the endowment, with a grant from the city covering an additional $1,200. 

Bill Ream, the community events coordinator for the city, said project leaders at MCPL wanted the park they picked to be accessible to people using wheelchairs and strollers. RCA Community Park has a flat, paved pathway. 

RCA Community Park is also a seven-minute drive away from the MCPL Southwest Branch, which Ream said made the park a convenient location. 

Ream said the StoryWalk is meant to engage park visitors’ literacy skills as well as encourage physical activity. 

“It’s strategically placed near the playground so that when kids are running around, they see the panels and walk with their parents down the trail,” Ream said. “It’s getting the body and the brain active at the same time and having some fun while doing it.” 

Angelica Candelaria, a children’s services manager with MCPL, said though the StoryWalk may seem geared to families, it’s not just for children. 

“Usually, it’s picture books that are put into these installments, but it’s for everyone,” Candelaria said. “Everyone goes through a hard day. It can be for college students, for adults, for families, really for anyone to enjoy a good story at the end of the day.” 

Librarian Raegan Zelaya Huston said she hopes people will enjoy the newest StoryWalk at RCA Community Park, as well as the other locations.  

“Every StoryWalk has a different story,” Zelaya Huston said. “If you liked this one, go check out the others, and then come back and see if a new story’s there. If not, you can read it again.”