Help Us Give Every NICU Family the Gift of Reading!
Elliot's Little Library gives books to local area NICUs to help families bond with their newborn babies who may be sick or premature.With your help, we would like to give every NICU family the gift of reading. Elliot’s Little Library is a wagon that features a selection of books that NICU families can pick from to keep and read to their NICU baby as often as they would like. We have book wagons at the Marshfield Children's Hospital NICU, the Anya Marie Jackson NICU at the Aspirus Wausau Hospital, Aspirus Stevens Point Hospital NICU in Stevens Point, WI, and the Ascension St. Elizabeth Hospital NICU in Appleton, WI. In order to continue to make this a reality, we always welcome book donations from you!Please consider giving to Elliot's Little Library by purchasing a book off of our Amazon Wishlist or giving a monetary gift using the buttons above. Using the Wishlist will ensure the book gets delivered straight to our home and loaded up for delivery to the NICU.We also accept books or checks made out to "Little Libraries, Inc." at our P.O. Box:Elliot's Little Library
P.O. Box 954
Stevens Point, WI 54481-0954Please contact us if you'd like to donate in another way.
Our Story
The NICU is a place we never imagined we’d end up when planning our family. Our little boy Elliot was born at 25 weeks, 1 day. He weighed 1 lb, 12 oz. and was 13” long.Elliot spent 96 days in the NICU and we read to him every single night. The main reason we started reading to Elliot was to try and form a bond with him because there wasn’t much we could do except sit and watch him grow during his first crucial weeks. This turned into a nightly routine that we continue today. Reading is very important to all babies; the sound of their parents' voices is very soothing and it helps babies with their brain development. Reading also has a profound effect on the bonding between families and babies in the NICU.Today, Elliot is healthy, smart, and rambunctious. We always like to thank the Nurses, Doctors, and Staff at Marshfield Children's Hospital for their devotion to caring for the tiniest of patients, especially Elliot!
Library History
Here is a look back at how little Elliot’s Little Library used to be and how much it has grown thanks to our family, friends, and donors!We are proud to say book wagons are now in Marshfield Children's Hospital NICU, Anya Marie Jackson NICU at the Aspirus Wausau Hospital, Aspirus Stevens Point Hospital and a soon to be announced 4th location. Any baby who is admitted into the NICU, regardless of how long their stay is, receives a book.
2017-2018: The beginning
In 2017 and 2018 our family donated 24 children’s books (one for each bed in the NICU) in honor of our son who was born at 25 weeks and spent 96 days in the Marshfield Children’s Hospital NICU. These books were to be donated to families with NICU stays that were likely going to be very long (much like ours), as determined by the NICU staff. We didn't have a wagon (yet), and we didn't know how big this would become.
2019 - One NICU, One Wagon
In 2019 we had a big dream of starting Elliot’s Little Library - a book wagon that could be in the NICU where parents could choose a book to have and read to their baby. We didn't want books to only be for long NICU stays though; we wanted books to be available to every family with a baby who was in the NICU for longer than a week. We reached out to family and friends, started a Facebook page, and in the end were blown away by peoples' generosity: we received 225 children’s books and any baby that had a Marshfield Children's Hospital NICU stay of longer than 1 week recieved a book that year.
2020 - Expanding to Three NICUs
In 2020 we again reached out to our family and friends and had a big goal of 500 books. We wanted to offer books to every family with a baby in the NICU, regardless of time of stay, along with hoping to introduce Elliot's Little Library to another area NICU. Much to our surprise we received 732 books! This allowed us to expand Elliot’s Little Library into 2 additional NICU’s in Central Wisconsin! Our son Elliot was also able to be much more involved this year, helping us sort books, count them, and deliver them to the NICUs. The pandemic definitely affected our ability to deliver books, but we were very grateful for the accommodating hospital staff who met us outside to ensure that Elliot got to see where the books were going!
2021 - More books for future opportunities
In 2021 we were overwhelmed once again with the support we received. We reached out to more local businesses for support and with the help of so many people we ended up with 1,045 book donations! This allowed us to start looking into our 4th Elliot’s Little Library location ❤️
Contact Us
We'd love to hear from you! Simply fill out the form below and we'll be in touch.
We also accept correspondence, book donations, or monetary gifts (checks should be made out to "Little Libraries, Inc.") at our P.O. Box:Elliot's Little Library
P.O. Box 954
Stevens Point, WI 54481-0954
Thank You
We'll be in touch!
Our Donors
Our Generous 2021 Donors
Addie Gerritts
Adrianne Smith
Amanda Freberg
Amanda Musson
Amber and her 3 NICU graduates
Amy Marek
Amy Sekel
Ashley Hartjes
Becky Weber
Betty Gelhar
Bonnie Jensen
Brenda Coates
Carol Vandehey
Cassie Tudor
Charlotte Kyle
Cheryl Vandehey
Claudia Ketcham
Connie Runge
Deb and Kevin VanDynHoven
Debrah Ferreria
Diane
Dylan Jensen
Elizabeth Wise
Emily Abbott
Francie and Jim Wendelborn
Gabrial and Michael Bird
Greg Hagen
Half Moon Hill LLC
Hanna Rakovec
Hedy Vincent
Heidi Oberstadt
Holly Fritz
Ingrid Glurich
Jamie Whitt
Jared Kassien
Jason and Brittany Van Dyn Hoven
Jeanne Olson
Jeff and Rhea Lucovsky
Jennah Stark
Jennie Baranowski
Jennie's Ark Childcare
Jennifer Oestreich
Jonathan Krohn
Jonathan and Tracy Plato
Jordan Imoehl
Josh Christie
Judy Bibbee
Kaitlin Stangl
Kara Marker
Kevin
Kindred Spirits Books
Kirt and Billie Robbins
Kristen Stencil
Kristen and Larry Victory
Kwik Trip
LaVon Bunker
Leanne Herman
Linda K. Hamann
Lisa
Lisa Bauer
Lisa Oertel Re/Max Lakeside Realtor
Lisa and Richard Oertel
Lloyd Dewolf
Lynda Lindsay
MacKayla Schaetz
Madelyn and Henry Effinger
Maria Blaskowski
Marianne Richmond
Marie Roberts
Mary Natoli
Mary and Dave Verboomen
Matt Conquer
Matt Englert and Rosanne Burac
Michael Hietpas
Michelle
Michelle Hendricks
Nick, Ariana, and Witten Tripoli
Nickky Weden
Nina Mairs
Pam and Jeff Jansen
Pamela Boynton
Patti, Dawn, and Jeff Oertel
Power of Five
Renaissance Learning
Robert and Marion Scherff
Rosanne Burac
Roxanne Ruminski
Samantha Mathwich
Sandy and Dennis Meis
Seth Radley
Skyward
Steven Klicka
Sue Mueller
Susan E. Toufar
The Bettingers
The Hovick Family
The Kampstra Family
The Kuenzi Family
The Meis Family
The Naumann Family
The Warsek Family
Thrivent Financial
Tiffany C. Kania
Tim O'Brien and Danielle Hanson
Tracy Felix
Tyler Victory
Tyler Allard
Veronica, Steven, Bella, and Lily
And other anonymous donors
Our Generous 2020 Donors
Seth Obermeier
Jennell Jenney
Allison Leef-Ombasa
Leah Cramer
Erica J. Ringelspaugh
Leah Zwiers
Amie B. Tolbert
Eva
Michelle Campbell
Arthur Wong
Matthew Meis
Kylie Heintz
Richard Harlan
Cheryl and John Vandehey
Amy Montoya
Sam Zaydel
Jamie Brim
Gregory Bell
Bryant Coughlin
Karyn Goldstein
Stan Russell
Yacin Nadji
Joelle Gawlik
Sandy and Dennis Meis
David Lapsley
Michele Bettencourt
Joshua Christie
Chandan Chowdhury
Colleen Li
Lloyd Dewolf
Sowmya
The Effinger Family
Scott Vowels
Tiffany Kania
Edward Smith III
Jamey DeLuzio
Callas
Aaron Soto
Amanda Freberg
Tom
Gabby and Michael Bird
LaVon and Greg Bunker
Michelle Bettencourt
Vern Paxson
Adam Brunner
Jake Koutnik
The Hoffmans
Tyler Victory
Angela Loomis
Jessi Meis
Stephen Reed Smoot
Katie Babcock
Thomas Curran
Sophia Pasadis
Dane Pigott and Family
Jon Van Dyke and Family
Caylie Sadin
The C Family
Margaret Kozak
Chris Kozak
Brooke Nelson
Geoffrey Kasten
Vince Stoffer
Jennifer Oestreich
The Warsek Family
Windy Kauth
Sue Mueller
Jeff and Rhea Lucovsky
Lawrence and Kristen Victory
Evan D Wallis
Megan L
Alanna Weichelt
Bill and Rachelle Melms
Jim Kauth
Amy Marek-Brady
Brian and Clara Dye
Wendy Christianson
Vaishnavi Grudanti
Jeremy, Megan, and Louie Kirsch
Sarah Pulvermacher
Kendall Clay
Sasha Belyi and Masha Chernyak
Richard and Lisa Oertel
Ingrid Glurich
The Sirinek Family
Brian and Paula Bettinger
Deb and Kevin VanDynHoven
Jason and Brittany VanDynHoven
Greg Hagan and Family
The Barlow Family
Michael Munt
Allison Paulson
The Brandls
Francie and Jim Wendelborn
The Hovick Family
The Vandeheys
Jason Turner
Connie Runge
Sarah Kreager
Tom
Nate Freberg
Jenny Iverson
Mary and Dave Verboomen
Jennah Stark
Sue O'Keefe
Jackie Kleman
Maria
Linda Lyndsay
Codi Wood
Stephanie Seavers
Craig Peskett
Betsy
Debra Sutton
Grace Miller
Emily Abbott
Ginger Houck
Brad Miller
Bob and Marion Scherff
Ryan Damian
Adina Damian
Sarah and Isaac Hammerstad
Tom and Mary Whittington
Kara Marker
The Dorn Family
Josh Thom
Sammantha Mathwich
Michael Hietpas
Roxanne Ruminski
Kayla Anne Laudani
Keith and Leslie Fens
Bill and Laura Lee Wierzbinski
Michael Handler
Valerie Hay
And Other Anonymous Donors
Our Generous 2019 Donors
Amanda and Nate Freberg
Michelle Campbell and Family
Kristi Lenzo
The Effinger Family
Hedy Vincent
Jessi and Matt Meis
Carl Saiyed
Magesh Nepolian
Josh Christie
Heidi and Brian Oberstadt
Jennifer Jefferson
Tyler Victory
The Warsek Family
Dennis and Sandy Meis
April and Mark Vach
Amy Marek
Mandi Goodsett
Greg and LaVon Bunker
The Egan Family
Brad Miller
Dan and Emilie Kuenzi
Lisa and Richard Oertel
Jen Oestreich
Seth Hornung
Greg Hagen
Samantha Mathwich
Connie Runge
Brian and Haley Hovick
Jennifer Klicka
Michelle Wagner
Mary and Dave Verboomen
Paula Bettinger
Jenny Iverson
John and Cheryl Vandehey
The Wendelborn Family
Lynda Lindsay
The Raspanti-Lederhaus Family
The Mayo Family
Emily Abbott
Morgan and Ryan Meis
The Rosario Family
Michelle Myers
Anik Chakroborty
Ann Huntoon
Sue Mueller
The VanDynHoven Family
Bob and Marion Scherff
Bill and Laura Lee Wierzbinski
Gabrial and Michael Bird
Keith and Leslie Fens
Pam Jansen
Roger Fens
…And other Anonymous Donors
Donate
We want to make it as easy as possible to support our cause! Simply complete the donation form below and we'll use 100% of your donation to buy books for our NICU families and babies!
Elliot's Little Library - In the News
We're always very excited when news outlets feature our cause! Check out some of the news articles about Elliot's Little Library over the years.
8/25/2022 - WSAW Newschannel 7
"Elliot's Little Library looks to expand" By Drew Sutherland
8/20/2022 - Stevens Point Gazette
"A little library for a considerable cause" By Kris Leonhardt
10/04/2020 - WSAW Newschannel 7
"Elliot’s Little Library donates 270 books to Marshfield NICU, expands" By Emerson Lehmann
9/02/2020 - WSAW Newschannel 7
"Family collecting new books for NICU at Marshfield Children’s Hospital" By Emerson Lehmann
