Cook Memorial Library Launches Second La Grande StoryWalk at Birnie Park
By Garrett Christensen on Wednesday, February 19th, 2025 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
LA GRANDE – For young children, reading is an important part of their development, as is time outdoors. The Cook Memorial Library is making it easier for the two to overlap. Following the success and general outpouring of community support for the original La Grande Story Walk at Riverside Park, the program has officially been expanded to Birnie Park.
Installed in the fall of 2024 at a cost of $9,930 dollars, the new StoryWalk officially put up its first story, Fire Cat by Esther Averill, on Thursday, January 30, 2025. According to Cook Memorial Library Children’s Librarian Mackenzie Issak, the funds for the new StoryWalk ($10,000 in total) were left to the library by longtime patron and La Grande resident, Linda Elegant, who passed away in 2023. As reflected in a recent press release from Cook Memorial Library:
“Linda Elegant was a long-time La Grande resident and Cook Memorial Library patron who
deeply valued literacy and education. She loved literature, composition, photography, animals,
and being outdoors. Linda carried her camera with her everywhere, taking hundreds of
photographs of birds, flowers, animals, and the occasional person.”
Linda’s husband, Bob Castles, oversaw the donation and assisted the library in the development of the new StoryWalk, officially dubbed the Linda Elegant Memorial StoryWalk. Castles was also the one to select Fire Cat as the first story.
As to why Birnie Park was chosen for the new StoryWalk, the reasoning was twofold. Firstly, the park’s layout and fencing make it both easy and safe for kids to run ahead to each post on the Storywalk, much as they enjoy doing at Riverside Park. Secondly, the park’s location and distance from Riverside make it convenient and accessible to a new part of the community. As explained by Isaak:
“We did consider several other locations in La Grande, but we ultimately settled on Birnie Park because of its general location, accessibility, safety, and proximity to EOU.”
Like the original Riverside StorWalk, the Linda Elegant Memorial StoryWalk is updated monthly with a new set of stories from different sponsors. These stories and sponsors differ completely between the two parks, meaning kids, families, or anyone interested in a bit of outdoor reading, can visit both and still get a unique experience each month. When asked what she was most excited about with the launch of the second StoryWalk, Issak reflected:
“I am most excited about providing a second location for people of all ages to get outside and do something that does not cost them anything. As librarians we are always searching for new ways to reach our community, so whenever we get the opportunity to go beyond the library building and serve people where they are, we’re excited to take it.”
For anyone interested in sponsoring a new story for the StoryWalks, see information at http://www.cookmemoriallibrary.org/ or contact Mackenzie Isaak at Cook Memorial Library, 1-541-962-1339.
