Rachelle Miller, director of Troy-Miami County Public Library, spoke to the Troy Noon Optimist Club about the Story Book Walk scheduled to be installed at the McKaig/Race Park. The Story Book Walk will include 20 permanent signs—or stations—that follow the walking trail that loops around the park. Each station will include two pages of a picture book. There will also be stations for the cover and for suggested activities and literacy information.
The stories will change periodically so families can return and take a new walk. This will also allow children to get physical activity while reading a book—a great concept for children who love to learn but have trouble sitting still. Through its other programs, the library has learned that stories delivered in an unusual way can sometimes be the catalyst for making reluctant readers more interested in reading and library staff hope the Story Book Walk will inspire Troy’s youth to love reading.
The library has done previous temporary story book walks at Brukner Park, behind the library. These were well-received, so library staff approached city staff about making the Story Book Walk permanent. Installation of the Story Book Walk is scheduled for May. The McKaig/Race park was considered an ideal location because of its proximity to area schools and neighborhoods.
The first book chosen for the Story Book Walk is Take Me Out to the Yakyu by Aaron Meshon. The story follows a little boy and his grandfathers as they take in baseball games in America and Japan—a sport beloved in both countries—and learn about the rich, varying cultural traditions. The story was chosen because of the park’s international connection with Troy’s sister city Takahashi, Japan.
The Troy Noon Optimist Club has been supporting the youth of Troy for 60 years. The club motto is “Bringing Out the Best in Kids. A few of the service projects that the Club is involved in include sponsoring the Hometown Halloween Parade and Costume Contest, the Hometown Holiday Celebration, our own “Avenue of Flags” and the Troy Noon Optimists Strawberry Festival Booth. Our “Avenue of Flags” program provides the majority of our funds to support our five scholarships awarded yearly to Troy graduates and allows us to continue our Troy Noon Optimists Oratorical Contest for Jr. and Sr. High students. It also gives us the ability to provide support for kids programs like The Lincoln Center, Girl Scouts, Destination Imagination, Sheriff’s Summer Youth Camp, Brukner Nature Center, Kids Read Now, and many others. I am honored to be a part of this enthusiastic group that is contributing to all the great things that make Troy one of America’s Best Communities!”
