Adrienne Davidson
Photo of Adrienne and the Little Pink Library by Shane Davidson.
Adrienne Davidson is a bringer of joy.
Inspired by the creator of the Sidewalk Joy Map – PDX Dinorama out of Portland, Oregon – Adrienne dreamed of having her own little spot of joy in her hometown of Lockport, NY.
“I love this concept of sidewalk joy, and I love this concept of these little libraries offering more than books,” she said. “I feel with the state of the world, a little bit of joy is something that is needed right now.”
While out one day with her best friend, Adrienne stumbled upon some discarded cabinets. It was here that her vision began to solidify. “We built the library from discarded goods. I wanted it to be upcycled because that is very much in line with my values,” she said.
After snapping up the ‘garbage’ and doing the build at her friend’s house, the upcycled ‘house’ was transported to Morrow Ave and painted pink. “I’ve always wanted to have my own little library and I’ve always wanted it to be pink because it’s my favorite color,” she said.
Ever since then, it’s just been this thing that has been so joyful in my life.
The installation of what has now become lovingly known as the Little Pink Library was a Mother’s Day gift from Adrienne’s husband this past May. “Ever since then, it’s just been this thing that has been so joyful in my life,” she said. Her husband Shane is Adrienne’s partner for life, best friend, and “biggest cheerleader,” she said. They’ve been together for half of their life, meeting in college as two environmentalists in the punk community, and remain dedicated to that ethos, pouring their knowledge and passion into their daughter, 10-year-old Lucy.
The library is also an “accidentally-on-purpose” basis for one of the courses Adrienne developed for Lucy’s homeschooling curriculum. After reading the Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer, a book about giving and taking in the natural world, Adrienne realized that reciprocation was a big part of the whole mission of the library.
“When I read that book, I realized that sharing abundance is something that can be done in all kinds of different ways,” she said. “I homeschool my daughter and I want to teach her to be a stand-up citizen. I want her to be a good person in her community. And I want her to know that when people need help, you help no matter what. So it’s a good life lesson for her as well.”
The outreach and the willingness to help and the excitement around it was so beyond me.
Adrienne felt this call to share in her bones, and discovered others did, as well. “This community has given me so much that the least I can do is try and give back a little bit,” she said. “It’s just this amazing reciprocal thing – I don’t even know how to explain it. The outreach and the willingness to help and the excitement around it was so beyond me.”
She continued: “It’s just a thing that’s so much bigger than me. And it just feels so good knowing that you’re in a community that wants to share, and they’re friendly people, and they’re kind people. The citizens of Lockport are like nobody else, and the small business owners are incredible people. I wish more people knew how wonderful this little place is, because it’s just such a joy.”
Photo by Shane Davidson.
The library offers all manner of art supplies donated by the community and from Adrienne’s own crafting overstock, such as paintbrushes, paints, coloring sheets, coloring books, yarn, knitting needles, and crochet hooks, books by local authors, little zines that she and her husband make, and more. And recently, it started offering food as a response to the November delay of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) caused by the recent shutdown of the federal government.
“When my daughter was born, I wasn’t able to nurse her,” Adrienne explained. “If WIC wasn’t there to provide not only nutrition for her, but for me, I don’t know where we would have been.”
As someone who once had to rely on a little assistance from the SNAP program, Adrienne realized that since she was now in a position to offer her own assistance to others, she should. “Now that I’m in a spot where I can help and organize, I felt called to,” she said. “The other stuff is fun, but right now we’re talking about people’s lives and we’re talking about hunger. That’s got to be my focus.”
Now that I’m in a spot where I can help and organize, I felt called to.
Adrienne got to work assembling fresh bagged lunches every day, leaving them on the porch and letting folks know via social media that they were there for the taking, no questions asked. Each bag contained a ready-to-eat or heat-and-go main meal, a granola bar, a sweet treat, some baby carrots, organic applesauce or an apple, chips, a bottle of water, and a spoon.
“If you’re asking for help, that doesn’t mean that you don’t deserve good fresh ingredients as well,” she said. “Making sure that there was fresh food so that the lunches were well-rounded was really important to me.”
She’s also been including non-perishables in the library, including canned chicken, organic canned vegetables, microwavable mac and cheese and rice cups, and black beans. “I’m trying to put things in there that can be used for whole meals,” she said.
Although the government has ended the shutdown as of mid-November, the effects are likely to last for several more weeks, if not longer. Adrienne plans to continue stocking the pantry. “I’m going to keep it going because hunger is not something that stops.”
When mom started feeding her community, Lucy took notice and pitched in, helping to assemble the lunches. “Oh, I’m so glad we’re doing this,” she told her mom.
I’m going to keep it going because hunger is not something that stops.
In addition to providing her own small pantry, Adrienne has raised money for other local food pantries, most recently in collaboration with Heirloom Soul Florals, who produced a bouquet fundraiser that raised $500. Adrienne used the money to purchase goods for her lunches and the Peanut Butter & Jelly Drive.
“The response and the help and the community that has come together around it has been so humbling and wonderful. And it’s made my heart very happy.”
The Little Pink Library has already taken a tour of the town, appearing at this past fall’s Cozy Fall Book Crawl produced by Lock City Books; Adrienne and the library also made appearances at the Lockport Community Farmers Market this past season. “I was like, I’m just here to spread good vibes and give away free stuff, and that was really fun,” she said.
“It’s just so wonderful to be part of such an incredible community, because Lockport’s such a special place. And to be part of that feels really, really great.”
The library also made its television debut in June, appearing on a segment for Natalie on the News, hosted and produced by Natalie Faas. “There are a lot of different book libraries, but this was the first of its kind in this area,” Adrienne said. “I think Natalie thought that was really cool. The story played four times that day, which was amazing.”
The little pink structure has already done so much since its time as a discarded cabinet, including showing Adrienne her place in the community. “The library was a big way for me to finally get out of my shell a little bit in Lockport, because I do struggle with anxiety,” she said. “I felt like maybe if I offered this thing to the community, it would open up more opportunities to speak to more people and meet new people and just bring people joy, if possible.”
Adrienne gets a bit teary-eyed thinking of the trajectory life has taken since May. “I don’t think I’d be where I am now, if it wasn’t for this library,” she said. “It was like, so cosmically aligned, you know? And it has just been such an amazing thing in my life.”
I don’t think I’d be where I am now, if it wasn’t for this library.
“It’s just been this project that’s been really fun for everybody.”
Donations of art supplies, paper ephemera, crafts, and the like, can be dropped off at the house of the Little Pink Library on Morrow Ave in Lockport, NY. There is usually a basket on the front porch, and all are welcome.
Follow the Little Pink Library on Instagram.
Written by Kristy Lock
My name is Kristy and I’m an American journalist, specializing in profile writing. I’ve told the stories of frenetic & fascinating people in Chicago, Illinois, Los Angeles, California, and my hometown of Western New York for nearly two decades. Feel free to drop me a line! I would love to hear your story sometime.
Photos provided.