Families in Orono, Old Town and surrounding towns can now borrow sports and other recreation equipment for free thanks to a new gear library being run by a small group of volunteers.
The Gear Library at Old Town-Orono YMCA opened in December at 479 Stillwater Ave., next door to the YMCA. Local volunteers came up with the idea, collected used equipment and launched a website showing the inventory available.
Gear libraries are becoming more popular in Maine. This one was inspired by the Katahdin Gear Library at the Millinocket Memorial Library, but there are more in Skowhegan, Portland and other communities.
While the University of Maine in Orono rents outdoors equipment, this new one is free and focused on giving used gear a second life. It encourages children and parents to get outside together, said Annie Powers, an Orono resident and co-founder of the gear library. Her hope is to see the gear library expand as more people become aware of it and support it through gear donations or funding.
“Part of my drive to do this is I get to talk to families all day long, and it’s hard for them to stay active, especially in the winter,” said Powers, who works as a pediatrician in Bangor. “I think for a lot of families, one of the barriers is the cost.”
Not everyone can afford to invest in new snowshoes or ice skates. Ideally, children will develop a love for outdoor activities, live an active life and pass those habits along to their children, she said.
The gear library is open from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, and it is staffed by volunteers. It is open to families in Alton, Bradley, Indian Island, Milford, Old Town, Orono and Veazie. People do not need to be members of the YMCA to borrow equipment.
Gear available includes ski boots, field hockey sticks, gloves, helmets, ice skates, life jackets, soccer cleats, sleeping bags, snowshoes and skis. They come in various adult and children sizes.
Because the gear is donated, offerings are limited and lent for two weeks. Powers, who likes to spend time outdoors with her husband and three children, wants to eventually give families the chance to borrow items, like soccer cleats, for an entire season, she said.
The YMCA has received $500 from Orono-Old Town Kiwanis and the Rotary Club of Old Town to fund the gear library and is waiting to hear back about grants that it applied for, said Jessica Fuller, arts and family development director. Funds will likely be used to buy sports equipment so the community has a larger selection to choose from.
She and Katie Wynn, a circulation clerk at the Orono Public Library, spent the last year or so making plans to launch the gear library, though Erik da Silva, associate education director at Bicycle Coalition of Maine, was involved in the early stages. They asked for gear donations on a local Facebook page and through an email group for parents.
Although the library did not have the space to house the gear library, Wynn still wanted to play a role in bringing it to fruition, and she has been instrumental to staffing it and getting the software set up for a website, Powers said.
River Runners, a YMCA mentorship program for students in seventh through 12th grades, designed the gear library’s logo. A few University of Maine students have volunteered to staff it.
“I think a lot of people don’t know about us yet, but we’re working on getting the word out,” she said.
