HELENA — Little Free Libraries can be found across Montana, from Glendive to Libby, but one in East Helena has special meaning behind it. Angie Cejka put together a library to carry on her friend Tonia Docter’s legacy of love and caring.
(WATCH: Woman memorializes friend with Little Free Library)
“She would have loved it,” Cejka said of the Little Free Library at 118 E. Riggs St. in East Helena.
Cejka created the library shortly after Docter’s death in May. Each part of the library reflects Docter’s personality—from the colorful designs on the structure, made with paint donated by another of Docter’s friends, to the box of toys for dogs, to what’s inside the library.
“She was just colorful,” Cejka said. “Everything about the library is Tonia, it’s whimsical.”
Cejka was able to tell Docter about her idea for the library before she passed.
“She was hopeful that people would use it,” Cejka said. “That the kids and strong women in our community would find it and keep it as a place of peace and quiet and love and inclusion.”
That hope has come true.
“I’ve had to replenish books twice already,” Cejka said.
People have stepped up to help keep the library stocked—dropping off all kinds of books for kids, crafters, young adult readers and more.
As people continue to use and love the library, Cejka said Docter’s legacy lives on.
“Her story doesn’t end here,” Cejka said. “We’re going to keep her memory alive because she deserved it.”
In the winter, Cejka hopes to stock the Little Free Library with hats for kids to pick up on their way to school if they need one.
