Lowcountry Strong: Three generations build ‘Little Free Library’ in Mt. Pleasant

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCSC) - While walking around the Coatbridge neighborhood a few weeks ago, Lexi Gravino and her mother Amy thought it would be fun to add a Little Free Library.

These libraries are part of the world’s largest book-sharing movement with more than 100,000 around the globe.

“We were talking about how nice it would be to have a Little Free Library in our neighborhood, so as soon as I got home I reached out to the HOA and got it approved before I knew how we’d get this thing built," Lexi said.

Her 92-year-old grandfather, Paul Walter, has always been a handyman and they knew he could help.

“Amy and Lexi came down to the house one day and they had a little sketch on a little notepad, a few dimensions, and Lexi thought this would be a nice thing to build,” Walter said.

“My dad, who always amazes me, he’s 92,” Amy Gravino said. “He’s always amazed me my whole life. I could present something to him and he could build it.”

They gathered wood, plexiglass and paint and began working on the project.

“We really put a lot of thought into it,” Lexi said. “The library itself is black but it has a lot of fun colors and I think that symbolizes that even though we’re going through a hard time a lot of positive things will come out of this.”

They posted about it on the neighborhood Facebook page and other neighbors were excited to get involved. The purpose of the library is to leave a book when you take a book and the collection has grown with books for all ages.

“It was a real privilege to be sandwiched between my dad and my daughter," Amy said. “This was a happy opportunity we had to work together.”

Walter added a roof using leftover shingles from Amy’s house and hopes it will withstand the rigors of Lowcountry weather.

Lexi Gravino even added a book she wrote and illustrated when she was 19-years-old called “Spread the Love.” The book centers around a heart statue that only glows when people in the town are kind. The book has many parallels to the current pandemic.

You can read about how to create your own Little Free Library by going to the website.

If you know someone or a group of people making the Lowcountry a better place during this time, you can tell us about it by filling out this form. You can also email Abbey O’Brien at aobrien@live5news.com and you might see them recognized on Live5News.

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