Morristown, IN − The Morristown branch of Shelby County Public Library is promoting early literacy and movement in nature with a StoryWalk® Picture Book Contest from March 3 through April 12.
 
Create a picture book for children with a story and illustrations, up to 30 pages long. Submissions will be accepted between Read Across America Week and National Library Week. Library staff will vote on their favorite to become the next StoryWalk® at Morristown Community Park! Winners will be announced at the library’s Summer Reading Kick-Off on June 3. All ages are welcome to submit designs to morristown@sscpl.lib.in.us or drop off at the Morristown Library at 127 E Main Street in Morristown. The winning entry will be displayed outside in podium-style boxes with plexiglass lids, one page at a time and in the correct order along the walking trail in Morristown Community Park.
 
Morristown’s StoryWalk® was installed in the spring of 2023. The project was funded with help from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), NineStar Operation Round Up, the Northeastern Hometown Community Fund through Blue River Community Foundation, and with permission from the Town of Morristown. We held a ribbon cutting for the official opening on June 19, 2023. Our 16-post StoryWalk® spans about a third of the walking path at the park, beginning at one of the shelter houses and ending at the other at the north and south ends of the park.
 
Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, Vermont created the concept and developed The StoryWalk® Project in collaboration with the Kellogg-Hubbard Library while she was working with the Vermont Department of Health. There are now StoryWalks® all over the country, with several in Indiana including: Fishers, Johnson County, Fortville, and the Shelby County A to Z Storybook Trail at the Porter Center.
 
For further information about the contest, call Cat Roberts in Morristown at (765) 818-1718 (ext.235).