Eagle Scout places 'Little Free Libraries' in Menifee

Spencer Clark fills one of the Little Free Libraries placed around town for his Eagle Scout project.

A Menifee Eagle Scout recently completed a project designed to promote reading and increase access to free books in local neighborhoods.

Customizing the popular concept of "Little Free Libraries", Spencer Clark placed three boxes in strategic locations and stocked them with books that residents can take to read free of charge. They also are urged to contribute books for others to read. It's all on the honor system. Details on the Little Free Library organization can be viewed here.

"I am 17 years old and have lived in Sun City (Menifee now) for my entire life," Clark wrote in an email to Menifee 24/7. "I have been in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts since the third grade. I have just completed my Eagle Project, which was my last large task to complete in Boy Scouts (Troop 695) to achieve the highest rank of Eagle Scout.

"For my project, I was able to obtain some old newspaper dispensers that we re-purposed into Little Free Libraries. The reason I did this project was to help benefit the community while promoting literacy and reading for many age groups. The Little Free Libraries are exactly that, FREE — you can take a book and if you have an extra book or two, you can drop it in for someone else to read and enjoy.

"I felt that having a project that would be a part of the community now and in the future would be fun to show my wife and kids someday. This project has taken a long time to complete and hard work, however, it has been worth it."

The Little Free Libraries are located at the following locations:

-- Clubhouse at Heritage Lake, 27600 Heritage Lake Drive.

-- Marion V. Ashley Community Center, 25625 Briggs Road.

-- Kay Ceniceros Center, 29995 Evans Road

Spencer Clark and Menifee Community Services Director Jonathan Nicks show the library box in Kay Ceniceros Center.