Photo: WBZ NewsRadio \ Shari Small
ROXBURY, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — More than a hundred people grabbed their running shoes and headed for the library on Saturday morning. The event, Book It Around Boston, kicked off with participants at libraries at the four corners of the city with their new Boston Public Library passports in hand.
About 150 people ran, walked, and biked to different library branches around the city to get their BPL passports stamped. The event launched the BPL passport as a way to incentivize exploring different neighborhoods while learning about local libraries. Those with a BPL passport can receive a stamp at each library branch around the city.
Photo: WBZ NewsRadio \ Shari Small
“The Passport is a fantastic way to see and experience the many neighborhoods of Boston through the lens of its treasured local libraries. Every branch of the BPL has its own unique personality and important role within the community it serves, and we hope this passport and Book it Around Boston will encourage Bostonians to get out and explore our wonderful city,” Maggie Levine, BPL librarian said on the BPL website.
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BPL partnered with Heartbreak Hill Running Company for the event and created five guided routes from five different branches, all of which ended at the Roxbury branch where event-goers enjoyed the reception. There were guest speakers, refreshments, snacks, and merchandise for those who had their BPL passports stamped.
Photo: WBZ NewsRadio \ Shari Small
"The fact that they've all been renovated is really, I think, a pinnacle institution in our city and to involve that with the running community is really something special," Dan Fitzgerald, co-founder of Heartbreak Hill Running Company said.
The routes ranged from less than a mile to six miles depending on which branch participants started at. The five library branches showcased were in Honan-Allston, the West End, Parker Hill, Roslindale, and Fields Corner.
"We did four miles, we started in the West End branch, we went from the Common to the Chinatown branch, through Commonwealth Avenue to Copley, then to the South End branch, and ended up in Roxbury," a runner named Ben told WBZ's Shari Small.
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