BILLINGS — Calling all bookworms: the Billings Public Library has a new trail just for you.
On Tuesday, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the outdoor amphitheater at Josephine Crossing, located at 1800 Front St. in Billings, for the new Billings Story Trail.
"I’m more than anything excited for the community to see it, to participate in it. To have one more way of bringing literacy to their lives. That’s what I’m most excited about,” said Allynne Ellis, the children's librarian at the Billings Public Library, on Tuesday. “Billings is very much a 'get out and do stuff when it’s nice' community. And we only have so many opportunities to do that, it’s a short time period. So this is what we want you to do. Use this time. You’re also being able to explore literacy, talk to your kids about nature, and enjoy the beautiful outdoors."
The Billings Public Library, in collaboration with McCall Homes, unveiled the new project that the library says is a first of its kind in Montana.
“The hope is that this is the first of many, that we can do it in every region of the city. That everybody has the chance to have some literacy. To be out, taking a walk on an absolutely beautiful day and read to their children at the same time,” Ellis said. "We got funding from the Billings Public Library Foundation, who got funding from the Fortin Foundation, Nick and Linda Cladis, McCall Homes who helped us find a spot to put it, and then 406 Handyman Services actually dug the holes and stuck the displays in. So lots of people had their hands in making this happen."
Ellis said the project has been in the works for nearly two years, and she is excited to see it finally come to fruition.
"(It's been) a year and a half to two years. From grant writing to proposal to funding to planning to digging holes, two years.” Ellis said.
As you walk the trail, you will see laminated pages of the featured book hung on metal posts. After walkers have completed the trail, they'll have finished one book. That book will change quarterly.
Families are already taking advantage.
"It’s really exciting. You know, we’re always looking for things to do. And in the summer, we go out for a lot of walks, so this sounds like it’s going to be a fun little activity to do," said Jennifer Farris, a mother of three living at Josephine Crossing. “We love reading books at the house, and so this is a fun way to read in a different setting and just to have other options than the books we have at home."
More options, and closer ones than the downtown library.
"(The library is) a little bit of a drive. And with three young kids, it’s a process to get everyone out the door," Farris said. "It sounds like something fun we can do with our neighbors, and you know ask them what they thought about the book. It’s something they can do with their peers, get a group involved in it."
Farris said it's a bonus being so close to home.
"Having it so close to home is definitely a valuable addition, because like I said, getting all the kids packed up to go to the library is a process," Farris said. "So anything that we can do to bring it closer to home, bring it closer to them, is great."
Which is precisely what the project planners were hoping for.
“That’s exactly what this was supposed to do: bring the library to our patrons," Ellis said. "They don’t always have an opportunity to get down to the physical building, and so it’s our chance to make it out into the world."
