On October 18, Todd H. Bol died from complications of pancreatic cancer. The 62-year old was the founder and builder of the first Little Free Library (LFL) and served as the nonprofit’s executive director. I had the pleasure of interviewing Todd last fall when the WNBA awarded the Second Century Prize to the LFL. I remember his enthusiasm, his dedication to the mission of making literacy available to all, and his infectious laugh.
In 2009, Todd built the first LFL out of an old garage door in honor of his mother. His mother, a teacher, had cherished books, literacy, and community.
To meet demand—and demand there was—Todd built 30 more LFLs in 2010. At the time of Todd’s passing, there were 75,000 LFLs all over the world. They come in all shapes and sizes, including police cruisers in Los Angeles and Minneapolis that visit their communities with signs that say “We Share Books.”
Todd told me that he never intended the LFL “to become a nonprofit venture. But the demand in the community was too great to ignore. It was really a mistake that took on a life of its own.” He laughed at his “mistake,” one that has affected community’s large and small worldwide.
Recalling a trip to India years before the creation of the LFL, Todd said he saw a nurse in a clinic caring for 15 bedridden patients. He asked her how she could see to everyone’s needs. The nurse pointed to two or three people who stood or sat at each bedside and said, “Those are watchers. Family, neighbors. When a patient needs something, they try to get it done. If not, they tell me. We are a community.”
That experience inspired Todd. After creating the LFL, he set up a group of neighborhood watchers whose purpose was to find community members in need of help becoming literate. Todd believed that by helping others become literate they were helping people to fully participate in the American Dream.
We also talked about a time that Todd lost his job at a company he helped to start. At a loss for what to do next, his wife suggested he take some time for himself and reflect on where he wanted to go next: “So I took a road trip, like Easy Rider—except with a minivan and self-help tapes.” He laughed again.
Those experiences fed Todd’s mission to “make the world a better place for people to be neighbors in.”
I asked him at the end of the interview what he would like those who love the LFL to do to help. He replied, “Tell them to become neighborhood watchers in their schools, libraries and community activities. Look at old wood garage doors and see the possibilities.” He laughed again.
Todd has left a large legacy to fill, but, it is a strong legacy with thousands of people across the world ready to help continue his mission.
I will remember Todd’s laugh and his legacy every time I see a Little Free Library or a police cruiser pass me on the highway.
Pamela L. Ebel, J.D., M.A., B.A
Pam received her B.A. in Speech, with a minor in theatre, from Chico State University, CA, in 1968, an M.A. in Rhetoric and Public Address from LSUBR in 1971, and her Juris Doctor degree from the Loyola, New Orleans, School of Law in 1977. She has been on the Tulane faculty for forty-eight years. She provides a variety of continuing education programs for professionals in social work, health care, law, private investigations, and longshore and insurance practice. She writes mystery and crime fiction and loves the printed word and the books that contain it.
