Families looking for a way to reduce their impact on the environment and save money might want to look into joining a toy library. If you’ve never heard of a toy library, it’s the same as a regular library but with toys instead of books. Sounds pretty cool, right?
Check out how two moms opened one in their community and went viral online.
For many families, libraries are great educational resources.
Besides being able to borrow books, families can benefit from free or low-cost programming and other community events.
Two moms from Minneapolis realized the idea of a library could be applied to toys.
Molly Stern and Taryn Tessneer received a community grant to launch the Minneapolis Toy Library. The idea was to make toys available to all families and help reduce the waste associated with buying new toys.
Families can check out up to five toys and can keep them for two-four weeks.
When the borrowing period is over, the toys are returned and families can take out some new toys. How awesome is that?
There is a small membership fee to join the toy library, but volunteers do their best to make it affordable for all.
Membership fees vary from $40-$100 for a family, but people can also apply for a scholarship or commit to volunteer hours in exchange for a reduced membership.
Since children outgrow their toys so quickly, this is a great idea.
Toy libraries have started to gain popularity across the country since they are able to provide educational toys to all kids and help reduce our impact on the environment. If there isn’t one near you, you could always start one like these moms did!
