Our Story
Chapter One
Once upon a time there was a lovely little town in Wisconsin named Sheboygan. Now Sheboygan, and its darling neighbors of Kohler, Sheboygan Falls and Plymouth, were filled with children, churches, cheese and chairs, and were wonderful places to raise a family. Schools were exceptional, local businesses thrived, and we enjoyed eating cheese and bratwurst. Lake Michigan kept us all “cooler near the lake.” We were even named the “Best Place to Raise a Family” by Reader’s Digest. When our children weren’t in school or helping on the farm, they were climbing trees, building forts or curled up with a good book. Life was wonderful.
Then over the course of time, families got busier and busier, and the children didn’t have time to play outdoors as much. Reality TV replaced real life adventure and reading for many, and playing computer games became the most popular pastime. This made many parents and educators sad.
Now a group of adults came along, and they had an idea to change all that. What if they built a special place, just for kids and their parents and grandparents where they could play outside and reconnect with nature? A safe and enclosed spot designed by award winning professionals to capture their imaginations and bring all their senses to life? An exuberant, playful space where joy is contagious? Welcome to Bookworm Gardens!
History of Bookworm Gardens
Back in 1999 Founder Sandy Livermore visited the Michigan State 4H Children’s Garden while attending the Perennial Plant Convention in East Lansing, Michigan. Not realizing the garden even existed, she spent the day there as part of a photography class. She was struck by the number of smiles she saw that day, not from just small children, but from moms, dads, grandmas and grandpas. Sandy was enchanted. Late in the afternoon, she saw a group of teenagers in matching teal t shirts reading books aloud to groups of small children. When she asked a volunteer who the teenagers were, he explained that these were volunteers who came once per week to read to the kids. Because so many teenagers wanted to volunteer, he continued, clinics on “how to read” and auditions were held to select the group. In that moment Sandy knew we needed such a garden in Sheboygan County. Not just a children’s garden, but a garden based completely on children’s literature that would nurture kids and adults alike.
For the next year she mulled the possibility over in her mind. Because Sheboygan County has no botanical garden, the task was daunting--creating not only the garden, programming, and the staff to run it--but setting up a not for profit corporation and raising the money necessary to build the garden. 
The idea gelled after several meetings with the late Bob Peterson, retired City Development Director, who convinced her not only that the idea was a viable one, it was a project that MUST happen. Bob set up many meetings with local officials to help find a site, and after looking at several different possibilities they met with Ray Hernandez, dean of the University of Wisconsin Sheboygan. Ray immediately saw the value of the project, and indicated not only willingness to provide us with a beautiful location for the garden, but also to offer students’ help as interns, artists, and teachers. After our blessing from Ray, we met with County officials, on whose land the university is built. A wonderful relationship was born.
The next years were spent in the design phase, identifying books to include through input from teachers, librarians, and reading specialists, and designing gardens around them. Finding a core of committed individuals to help make the garden a reality, we became incorporated, applied for not-for profit status, and began the task of applying for grants and soliciting donations. During this time we also contacted landscape architect Herb Schaal from EDAW of Fort Collins, Colorado. Herb had designed twelve children’s gardens throughout the United States at the time, and we felt that he could take our concept plan and transform in into a world-class children’s garden. Our idea, that of designing a garden completely around literature, was completely unique to Bookworm Gardens.
Once Herb’s Schematic Design Report was complete, we began the task of raising 2.8 million dollars, the total projected cost of the project. We did this by giving presentations to book clubs, wine and cheese gatherings, service groups, corporations and foundations. At the same time, we hired LJM Architects to design our Hansel and Gretel Administration Building as well as several smaller buildings on the site. We also began clearing the site of dead, diseased, and invasive species, a project that took more than a year and included the help of many dedicated volunteers. In addition, we began the search for local artists and educators who could help to bring our garden to life. We were amazed by the huge amount of talent in our own back yard, and also the willingness of the community to jump in feet first to help with the project.
Many ‘special projects’ helped the garden to evolve in a meaningful manner. Several high schools stepped forward to help build garden elements, as did retail establishments and individuals. Without their involvement, we could not have brought this project to fruition within our budget, as many unavoidable setbacks along the way raised both our costs and stress level.
The garden is now nearing completion. Summer camps, classes, field trips and special events are all underway. Yes, we have more to do—more money to raise, more gardens to build- but the core of the garden is garden is complete, and is beautiful. We are very proud of our board, who believed in our project from the outset, and of the entire community who has supported us.
Please come and visit us, and thank a volunteer when you see one. Without them, Bookworm Gardens would not exist!
Join us on our continuing adventure with Bookworm Gardens!
Herb Schaal
Our Landscape Architect
Herb Schaal is a landscape architect with over 30 years of experience in a broad range of applications of the profession, including urban design studies; site planning and design for corporate facilities and campuses; and highway and corridor work. He specializes in public gardens, including educational gardens for children and contemplative gardens for health care facilities. He is also an authority on the creation of natural landscapes and revegetation of difficult sites and disturbed areas. Thirty-eight of his projects have been recognized for awards by the American Society of Landscape Architects, including Bookworm Gardens, which received the National Merit Award for Planning & Urban Design in 2009. Herb was also recently named "Designer of the Year" by the American Horticulture Society.
Herb holds a MLA from State University of New York at Syracuse and is a Fellow with the American Society of Landscape Architects. He is a registered landscape architect in California, Missouri, Utah, and Wyoming, and is also certified with the National Council of Landscape Architects Review Board.
Herb's philosophy about designing for children stresses providing open-ended, interactive opportunities and engaging all the senses. Herb's gardens always include water to touch and hear, fragrant plants to smell, striking color combinations to see, and fruits and vegetables to taste. There are no keep off signs!
Herb has designed over twenty children’s gardens across the country, including:
- Lena Meijer Children’s Garden, Grand Rapids, MI
- Hershey Children’s Garden, Cleveland, OH
- Children’s Garden at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, IL
- Naples Children’s Garden, Naples, FL
- Red Butte Children’s Garden, Salt Lake City, UT
- Children’s Garden, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Boothbay ME