Good morning! Good news!
First Lutheran Church, 208 W. Sandusky Ave., has adopted Oakland Square Park during the last year, and has conducted a number of special activities at the park for area youths, including the recent installation of a Little Free Library.
The church’s Community Outreach members Hannah Young, Ray Kramer and Bob Hunsicker utilized an former newspaper stand and converted it to house books.
Kramer and Hunsicker worked together to remove the top attachment and added plexiglass door to the front, as opposed to its former drop style door, to keep the children safe as they access library books.
Young painted the exterior of the Little Library, opting for a Toy Story theme that she thought would appeal to the children.
The Little Free Library now is filled with books for area youths and others to enjoy at their convenience.
Also in the last year, the church has offered numerous community outreach activities at the park, including trick-or-treat, “Picnic in the Park,” and a Santa Shop at Christmas time.
“The kids who have stopped out to the park have been absolutely the sweetest. They are 100 percent into anything we’re doing,” Young’s mother, Karen Gamble related.“It has been a joy to share God’s love with them.”
In addition to these activities, church members have devoted time to routinely cleaning the park, planting new plants and flowers and adding new equipment. Last spring, the church added two new benches that were installed on the north and south points of the park.
During the upcoming months, First Lutheran Church will continue to offer activities for area families at the outdoor spot.