On Tuesday mornings in East Prospect Park, children have the opportunity to explore careers, travel back in time, meet new friends and let their imaginations run wild. Each Tuesday through Aug. 15, a free story time is held beginning at 10 a.m. It's open to children of all ages, and it's organized by Diana Dvorak, a reading enthusiast and mother of three.

"I felt that, especially coming out of the pandemic, people were looking to get out of the house and do things with other people," Dvorak said.

This is the third summer she's hosted the story time, which features special guests, free books for children and time for socializing.

"We've had the Lower Windsor Township Police come out for story time. We've had Crawford's Reptile Encounters, and we've had Republic Services for Touch-a-Truck," she stated. "We've really had tremendous support for story time."

Dvorak, whose children are 8 years, 6 years and 10 months old, has always believed in the power of reading. She established three Little Free Libraries in town, including one at East Prospect Park, off of Lemon Avenue.

At the weekly story times, children can choose books to take home from boxes of community donations. Dvorak either selects the books to read at story time or lets her guest speakers choose.

"We try to have something for everyone," she said. "We usually read two books, one geared towards younger kids, like 18 months to 4 years old, and then a second story for older kids."

Because the story time is located right next to a playground, kids can hop up and play if they lose interest or need to work off some energy without disrupting story time, she noted.

On average, story time attracts about 30 kids each week, and Dvorak said she especially enjoys the relationships she's seen forming among the participants.

"It's a book-centric event, but it's also about making friends," she remarked. "The kids have made friends, and the parents have made friends, too."

At a recent story time, living historians Sam and Julia Snyder gave a presentation about Civil War medicine, providing tables full of actual equipment used on the battlefields.

In August, Dvorak plans to organize a back-to-school pizza party to wrap up the story time season, but until then, she's looking forward to more fun-filled Tuesdays in the park.

"I hope this inspires somebody else to do something like this in their own neighborhood," she said. "I'd be happy to help them if they need help getting started."

In the event of rain, story time is held in the East Prospect Borough Hall, 28 W. Maple St.

There is no cost to attend story time, and the presenters volunteer their time as well. Community donations are accepted to support the program, and more information can be found by searching for "East Prospect Little Free Library" on Facebook.