Warners Bay is about to welcome its first very own street library.
And, it’s all thanks to a passionate local resident and mother-of-four Dee Dugac, who believes information “should be free for everyone”.
Her creation, Dee’s Place Street Library, will open at 1 Jonathan Sreet, right around the corner from Warners Bay Public School.
Her collection is slated to sit beneath one of the suburb’s oldest trees, inviting children and adults to browse and burrow.
“Warners Bay has a large population of school-aged kids and older people, many of whom don’t have easy access to books or the internet,” Dee said.
“I wanted to make information accessible to everyone, whether or not they have a computer at home.”
Dee was inspired after volunteering at her daughter’s former daycare, which had its own community book library.
From there, her idea has come to life.
Dee believes reading from a book is far easier and far more meaningful than staring at a screen.
“Books engage all the senses,” she said.
“The sound of turning a page, the feel of the paper, even the smell.
“It’s something you can hold onto… and it makes learning more memorable.”
Dee admitted she was particularly passionate about encouraging children to rediscover their joy for reading.
“My daughter only gets two reader books a week from school and she’s supposed to read two stories every day,” she said.
“Unless families have a library card or buy books, there aren’t enough resources and street libraries help fill that gap.”
Dee hopes to eventually receive support from the Lake Macquarie City Council, which she says has not yet provided funding for street libraries in the area.
Similar programs in Sydney offer kits worth up to $500 for community members to build their own libraries, enabling them to share stories across suburbs.
For now, Dee is focused on completing the finishing touches with her daughter painting a floral birdhouse-inspired sign for the front.
“I just love the idea of neighbours walking past, grabbing a book, reading it to their kids, and then popping it back for someone else to enjoy,” she told the Newcastle Weekly.
“It’s simple, it’s local, and it truly enables you to grow.”
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