The Weakley County Examiner

Shannon Taylor

CEO/Publisher

Laughter echoes around a table inside the Ned McWherter Weakley County Library as a group of friends passes a book from one reader to the next.

One person reads a paragraph before handing the book to someone else. If a difficult word comes along, there is no frustration, only encouragement. Their aide, Kelley Pettit, helps with unfamiliar words, asks questions about what they have read and celebrates each accomplishment right alongside them.

What began as a visit to register for the library’s Summer Reading Program has grown into something much bigger.

A group of adults from St. John’s has become a familiar sight at the library, checking out books, reading together, discussing stories and eagerly returning for more. Along the way, each participant has completed 10 books, earning prizes through the library’s adult Summer Reading Program while discovering a new love of reading.

Library Director Sara Rachels said she wasn’t sure what to expect when the group first signed up.

“I really thought that was just going to be it,” she said. “They would just have the cards and they’d be registered. They wouldn’t actually do anything.”

Then everything changed.

After Pettit became the group’s aide, they began checking out books and gathering around one of the library’s tables to read aloud together.

“They would pass the book around,” Rachels said. “Each one would read a paragraph. Some of them could get it right off the bat. Others needed extra help. After the book, the aide would ask them questions about it. Then they started checking out more books.”

The group soon reached a milestone.

“They actually each read 10 books,” Rachels said. “In the adult program that constitutes a prize, so they got a prize for it.”

Since then, they have continued returning to the library, checking out more books and turning them in on time.

For Rachels, the experience has been inspiring.

“You think you kind of take for granted the fact of just being able to read,” she said. “Here are these people who struggle with it, but yet they’re going to keep doing it. They’re never in a bad mood despite obstacles. They’re always a bright spot.”

“It’s not only a victory for the library, not only a victory for summer reading, not only a victory for literacy, but it’s a victory for me,” she said. “I take it personally.”

When the Weakley County Examiner visited the library, the group’s excitement was evident.

“We love it,” said Faye Crowell.

Crowell, Wendy Brinkley and Dawn Mohs enthusiastically described the books they have been reading together, including stories about dinosaurs, ocean life, fire trucks and animals.

“We’ve been reading some of those up there,” Crowell said. “We read the ocean life, the dinosaur book, the mammal book. We’ve been reading ‘The Magic School Bus,’ the fire truck and ‘A Job for a Pup.’”

Each participant had a favorite.

“I like the fire truck,” Crowell said.

“I like the dinosaur one,” Mohs added.

The reading sessions have become about much more than finishing books. Along the way, the group has learned new vocabulary, discussed science concepts and laughed together over some of the more difficult dinosaur names.

“They’re like the whales,” one participant explained while discussing a recent book. “The killer whales live in pods and they are called mammals.”

Pettit reinforces each lesson by asking questions about the stories and encouraging discussion, helping turn every book into an opportunity to build reading comprehension and confidence.

The group also spoke highly of the library staff, including Rachels and Assistant Director Katy Allen, saying they always make them feel welcome and help them find books and movies through the regional library system.

“They help us to see what’s out there,” one participant said. “They show us how we can learn with these books. You can learn more about the world like that.”

Another summed up the group’s feelings in a few simple words.

“We love them. They’re like family.”

Reading is only part of their busy schedules. During the interview, the group shared that they each hold jobs in the community. Brinkley works at Styles on Broadway, Mohs works at the University of Tennessee at Martin, and Crowell works at Tennessee Tractor. Despite their work schedules, they continue making time to visit the library, read together and participate in Summer Reading Program activities.

When asked what they enjoy most about coming to the library, the answers reflected curiosity as much as accomplishment.

“I love to read now,” one participant said.

Another added, “Learning new stuff.”

The group is already looking forward to more Summer Reading Program events, science activities and checking out additional books and Christian movies.

For these readers, the library has become much more than a place to borrow books. It has become a place to learn, laugh, encourage one another and celebrate every page they turn.

“They’ve just been coming back fairly regularly since then,” Rachels said. “I’ve never seen anything like it before. Since I’ve been involved in summer reading, it’s just inspirational.”