100s of Books for the Milwaukee Community
Since 2021, Milwaukee’s Biggest Free Library has given away thousands of books to adults and children in the Milwaukee area. Now four years in, the tradition continues on Milwaukee’s Southside. This year’s Milwaukee Biggest Free Library will be held on September 6, 2024, at Kosciuszko Park, 2201 S. 7th ST., Milwaukee from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. CST.
Barby The Book Fairy, a Milwaukee-based project that collects books and donates them to little libraries, and Literacy Services, a Milwaukee nonprofit focused on increasing adult literacy levels, have partnered to make this event happen. The resource fair is bigger with more vendors and there will be limited options for books available in other languages.
“[We are] making sure that we have meaningful books that reflect the community,” said Barbara Cerda, the owner of Barby The Book Fairy and career navigator at Literacy Services.
Adults and children will have access to advanced reader copies for the first time. There will also be music, face painting, and Betty Brinns Children’s Museum’s Wonder Wagon.
United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County, a nonprofit focused on improving the lives of the communities it serves, donated snack packs in 2023. This year’s event will feature a food truck.
Along with new editions, Cerda received a grant to purchase brand-new books to donate.
“I want to see more resources coming through,” Cerda said.
From A Project to A Permanent Event
Cerda decided to clean out her book collection during the pandemic in 2020. This led to Cerda and her two daughters dropping off the books to little libraries around their neighborhood. Once they ran out of the books, Cerda put out a call for donations. The donations eventually became too much filling up Cerda’s garage, so she had to think quickly and expand. That expansion led to the first Milwaukee’s Biggest Free Library.
The first year the library was a book swap. To Cerda’s surprise, she left with more books than she came with, so next year’s event was solely focused on giving the books away. Holly McCoy, the executive director of Literacy Services, saw Cerda’s work and wanted to support it.
“It is important to [Literacy Sevices] for us to be out and doing something for the community,” said McCoy. “Some active service.”
According to Wisconsin Literacy, 1 in 7 Wisconsin adults struggle with low literacy. In 2023, Literacy Services serviced 1,400 adults by providing adult education, English skills, and more. For McCoy, partnering with Barby The Book Fairy only made sense. Together, the organizations have been able to have a bigger impact by making Milwaukee’s Biggest Free Library a permanent event.
“Books are really a gateway to many other things,” said McCoy. “…When you get excited about reading it changes the game.”
Both Cerda and McCoy are book lovers and are happy to provide this resource to their communities.
“Reading is a vibe,” said Cerda.
How to Donate Books
To donate to Milwaukee’s Biggest Free Library reach out to info@literacyservices.org.
Book donations will not be accepted at the event.