Three southern New Brunswick communities are now home to “little libraries” with a big social impact. The Big Bookshelf is a social enterprise from Big Brothers Big Sisters that the organization hopes will help take its annual Big Booksale to the next level.
“It’s not like a one-time event. We’re trying to make this long-lasting and sustainable,” says Rhoda Welshman, special projects coordinator at Big Brothers.
The Big Bookshelves can be found at The Art Warehouse in Saint John, Honey Beans in St. Andrews, and Cobbler’s Lane Fudge Factory in Sussex. The shelves are stocked with gently used novels in both paperback and hardcover, as well as a smattering of children’s books.
The idea behind them is a creative use of today’s technology. Users simply tap their debit and credit cards, or Apple Pay and Google Pay, to the $5, $10 or $20 donation squares on a cell network-connected board, next to the bookshelf.
As your selection lights up and a ping sounds, the donation goes through the system to Big Brothers, and you can take your book for a relaxing read. With the shelves located in coffee shops, it’s a natural match for grabbing a great book to enjoy with a latte and a scone.
“Coffee and reading and books go together well,” says Cobbler’s Lane co-founder Andrew Smith.
He says volunteering the entryway space at Cobbler’s Lane, with two big, comfy, easy chairs for perusing the books, was an easy decision.
“We chatted back and forth a few times [with Big Brothers], and then we decided – we’re going to do it,” he says.
Supporting a youth-oriented, community-focused organization like Big Brothers was something that fit their business. So much so that Cobbler’s Lane is planning on hosting a book drive in the summer to help the organization replenish its stock.
But even a labourless, on-your-honour donation system has a cost. The cell system and board that support the donation process, from tiptappay.com, are also supported by donations from the community and from the book sales themselves. In the case of the Big Bookshelf in Sussex, Clark Chevrolet is the sponsor of the shelf.
Smith says the idea has already taken off like wildfire in the community.
“Our Facebook instant messages, as soon as we posted [the Big Bookshelf] was there, it was: ‘That’s so awesome!’ and also ‘I have books, can I bring books?’”
While you can leave a book and take a new one at the coffee shop locations, these stores don’t have room to keep large amounts of books beyond what’s on the shelf. Book donations are best made to Big Brothers directly at 39 King Street on Mondays between 9:00-4:00 p.m. They are also still looking for volunteers to sort the books.
The Big Bookshelf is a social enterprise, meaning profits from the venture go back to supporting the non-profit organization – Big Brothers Big Sisters, and more specifically, the mentoring program.
That’s the classic Big Brother Big Sister program where an adult is matched up with a child or youth where they hang out once a week for an hour or two at a time. The organization is also offering in-school social mentoring as well as career navigation and education mentoring.
Welshman says the need for the programs is increasing, but post-pandemic it’s been difficult to find volunteers as many of the usual people have fallen out of the volunteer sphere.
The pandemic, and the restrictions around it, were where the idea for the fundraiser came from. As in-person events like booksales were cancelled, the organization had to pivot to find new ways to make it work.
The shift has opened a door for the organization to get the word out even further about the services they offer to youth in southwestern New Brunswick.
“We don’t have much visibility in more rural communities,” says Big Brothers mentoring coordinator, Charlene Perry. “So it’s really nice to be able to expand to those areas… Hopefully we will be able to grow to St. George, Quispamsis/Rothesay area and places in between.”
“On each of our shelves we do have additional information and a QR code where people can go and find out more information about the programs and what we do in the community.”
Alex Graham is a reporter with Huddle, an Acadia Broadcasting content partner.
