Boy Scout prepares to seed Ward 4 neighborhoods with free book exchanges

Before the crocuses and daffodils pop up around the District sometime in mid-February, gardens across DC’s Takoma, Manor Park and Riggs Park neighborhoods will be sprouting colorful repositories of free books, thanks to the efforts of 16-year-old Manor Park resident Patrick Donnelly.

In late January, Donnelly plans to complete the installation of 10 Little Free Libraries throughout his neighborhood — a community service initiative he planned and directed as his Eagle Scout Service Project. The small wooden boxes, typically mounted on posts within reach of a public walkway, allow passersby to take a free book or to leave books for others.

“Through Little Free Libraries, millions of books are exchanged each year, profoundly increasing access to books for readers of all ages and backgrounds,” according to Little Free Library, the nonprofit organization that provides support to individuals interested in installing the book exchanges. The group’s website maintains an interactive map of Little Free Libraries across the country and around the world that have been registered.

A 10th-grader at McKinley Technology High School, Donnelly has been involved in Boy Scouts since starting as a Tiger Cub at the age of 6. Currently a Life Scout (the second-highest rank), he is working toward the Boy Scouts’ ultimate rank of Eagle Scout as a member of Troop 98, which meets at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Brookland. Advancement to Eagle Scout requires, among other conditions, that he “plan, develop, and give leadership to others in a service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or your community,” according to the Boy Scout Rank Requirements.

When he began the process of identifying a community need for his Eagle project, Donnelly met with his local advisory neighborhood commissioner, Natalee Snider, to discuss how a potential project could benefit the community. Snider, who represents single-member district 4B06, noticed the free library in the Donnellys’ own yard and remarked that she wished there were more of them in the neighborhood. They quickly agreed that a Little Free Library project would be an excellent fit for the community — particularly given that ANC 4B’s sole DC Public Library branch, the Takoma Park Neighborhood Library, is situated well beyond walking distance for most of the commission’s residents. Donnelly said he hopes that by expanding the reach of book exchanges, his project will help improve people’s access to free books.

Donnelly has already identified homes for all 10 of the Little Free Libraries that volunteers of all ages are building, with each headed to a steward in one of the nine single-member districts within ANC 4B. The distribution across the ANC will ensure that the availability of the book exchanges will stretch across multiple neighborhoods.

Over the course of two weekends in mid-December, a crew of volunteers including members of Troop 98 as well as family and community members put at least 200 hours of labor into building the libraries, working from a design Donnelly pulled from the Internet and modified to fit his project’s needs. The Donnelly family’s garage workshop got pretty crowded during those four days.

“Since only adults are allowed to use power tools in Boy Scouts, adults did all the cutting one day,” Donnelly said. “Then we had kids start assembling when they could. And then we had everyone paint when it was time.”

About 10 percent of the building work remains. Doors still need to be attached and identifying plaques need to be affixed. Donnelly anticipates having the installation completed before the end of January. “Doors will probably start going on once I get back to school,” he said.

Before the building phase could even begin, though, Donnelly spent about a year designing, planning, documenting and fundraising in preparation. The Eagle Scout advancement process calls into play a variety of planning, organization, presentation and leadership skills. The paperwork alone was daunting: completing a lengthy and detailed Eagle Scout Service Project Workbook; gaining leader, committee, council and beneficiary approvals for the project; procuring necessary signatures; applying for grants; properly accounting for spending; and making status reports.

Donnelly set up a GoFundMe campaign, which netted $1,000, and secured a $500 grant from the ANC, with the funds going toward building supplies, food for the volunteers, and registration on littlefreelibrary.org. Local businesses — Annie’s Ace Hardware in Brookland, Galliher and Huguely in Takoma, and WT Construction in Manor Park — aided the project by either donating or assisting with the procurement of supplies.

The planning process also involved engaging with local and community governing bodies, with Donnelly attending numerous ANC and Manor Park Citizens Association meetings. From the perspective of an ANC commissioner, Snider said, “This project was just perfect,” in that it was conceptualized by a community member, got community members involved, and benefits the community at large.

Once the project itself is complete, Donnelly must pass a board of review before becoming an Eagle Scout — a feat only 4 percent of Boy Scouts accomplish. If successful, he will join the ranks of such notable figures as former President Gerald Ford, filmmaker Steven Spielberg, astronaut Neil Armstrong and Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer.

And his corner of Ward 4 will be blooming with free books.