Someone blew up their Little Free Library. Here’s how Modesto neighbors came together
Stacy and Jay Willis didn’t think too much of the loud noise that seemed to go off right outside their Modesto home Monday night — it was just after the Fourth of July, after all, and fireworks had been going off all week.
But around 7:15 a.m. Tuesday, a neighbor knocked on their door to deliver the bad news: It appeared someone had blown up their beloved Little Free Library.
The blue, house-shaped book box once had three tiers of shelves for books and Plexiglas on the front and sides that invited passersby to see what treasures lay inside. Now, the structure lay in pieces with books scattered across the Willises’ front lawn, devastating the couple and the neighborhood that loved it.
“I just kind of fell apart when I saw it, the thought that somebody would be so destructive for no good reason,” Stacy said.
The couple filed a police report with the Modesto Police Department, which confirmed it is investigating the incident as a possible firework explosion. Security cameras on the home, located in a neighborhood near Briggsmore Avenue and Tully Road, did not capture anything that could lead to a suspect. All that’s left now is to rebuild.
What it meant
The Willises have one of approximately 60 book boxes registered in Modesto through the Little Free Library program, which aims to improve access to reading materials in as many communities as possible.
Stacy, a first-grade teacher, said she’s wanted a community library box for years, but it only became a real possibility when she and her husband moved into their current house about three years ago. The book box was finally installed in January, which Stacy thought was perfect timing with many libraries and schools still closed because of COVID-19.
“It just took to the neighborhood like wildfire,” Stacy said.
People were dropping off books within hours of the library being put up, and Stacy noticed the books changed every time she drove past it. In the last six months, both children and adults have swapped everything from classic novels to jigsaw puzzles.
“It was really exciting, and any time any of us were outside people would stop and say, you know, ‘We love the library, thank you for the library,’” Stacy said.
Cassandra Abram, a friend of the Willises who lives in Turlock, built the library with her husband as a gift to the couple. Although neither of them had done woodwork like this before, the Abrams were determined to help bring Stacy’s dream to life.
Abram said she is not going to let the vandalism deter her. She is already planning a redesign of the book box that will make it more colorful and, hopefully, more durable.
“I was shocked, and really sad to see our hard work and all the books destroyed,” Abram said. “I don’t want to let people who did this get the upper hand.”
A community responds
The Willises said that despite the destruction, they felt a sense of community from the kindness of people who want the library to return. Neighbors began dropping by within hours to say how heartbroken they were that the library was suddenly gone. Some people brought money or offered to rebuild a new box if the couple needed it.
“It’s just been amazing, the response,” Jay said.
The Willises were even interrupted while talking on the phone last week with The Bee.
Anna Whitebread, a neighbor from about a block away, stopped to drop off cash in hopes that she could help reinstate a neighborhood icon. Whitebread said she originally thought the library had just been taken down until Jay showed her the photos of pieces strewn across the lawn.
“It’s just real comforting to drive by and see something there for the kids and for the community,” Whitebread said. “When I drove by this afternoon, it was just shocking and devastating.”
Jay said many neighbors offering to help out were people they had never met before. To him, that response was emblematic of how the book box has brought the community together this year.
Stacy said the acts of kindness in the last few days have added some bright spots to such an upsetting experience.
“It made me realize that there was one bad person, but so many more good people that just rallied immediately around, and it kind of restored my faith in humanity in a real quick way,” Stacy said.
This story was originally published July 13, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
