LAKE WORTH, Fla. -- Palm Beach County Sheriff's deputies now have a new way to interact with kids in Lake Worth.
The substation on North G Street is now home to a 'Little Free Library.' It's one of more than 100 throughout Lake Worth.
Community member Mary Lindsey is behind the libraries and worked to get one at the sheriff's office. Local community artist Nina Benaroch painted the library in honor of the sheriff's office, complete with a badge, K9s and even the sheriff himself.
The library will be in the station lobby for kids to read while they are there, or even take home. The goal is to 'take a book, leave a book,' but deputies hope kids share the books with siblings or friends.
There will also be four mobile libraries in deputy patrol cars. In each section of the district, one deputy will have books in his car to share with kids he comes across in the community.
PBSO District 14 Commander, Captain Todd Baer is excited about implementing the program.
"It’s a great way to get kids reading and connecting with us on a level slightly different than we’ve done in the past such as playing ball or fishing things like that. This is, intellectually, we get to talk to the kids they get to know us as people, and hopefully we encourage them to read books which will help them with life," he said.
He added that PBSO is the first law enforcement agency in the southeast implementing the program.
"We're gonna interact with kids at a younger age up to their teen years, and for some of them when they think of deputies they just think of people getting arrested or getting tickets, this is a way to get to know us on a different level," Baer said.
The Little Free Libraries program has given out more than 250,000 books since 2015. The books are donated from the libraries of the Palm Beach County School District.
New #littlefreelibrary in Lake Worth at @PBCountySheriff substation! Complete with @RicBradshaw painting 👮♂️ Deputies will also have books in patrol cars to give out to kids. @WPTVpic.twitter.com/KdNqmf19Xs
— Stephanie Susskind (@StephanieWPTV) July 10, 2018