New Kouts library garden with pig sculpture reflects community

Chicago Tribune

20-06-2025

The new $170,000 garden at Kouts Public Library was a dream come true for youth services librarian Dawn Ailes.
When the Rotary Library Garden across from Valparaiso Public Library opened, Ailes' reaction was 'When do I get mine?' Porter County Public Library System Director Jesse Butz said.
Ailes wielded the large pair of scissors to cut the ribbon Wednesday to dedicate the new library garden at Kouts.
The Kouts garden is the fourth to open in the library system, joining the ones at Valparaiso, Portage and South Haven. Hebron's garden is set to debut next year.
For each, 'we try to make it a reflection of the community,' Butz said.
'We really wanted to capture the essence of Kouts,' Library Board President Olga Granat said.
Having a pig sculpture as the centerpiece seemed a natural. Kouts holds an annual Pork Fest in recognition of Harold Heinold's success in putting the town on the map with Heinold Hog Market, which was a major player in the pork trading business. Heinold wrote the rules for trading hog futures for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in 1996.
Butz's work on the library garden shows. In planning features, he even found a spider structure to make the trash can more attractive.
A story walk at the new Kouts Public Library begins with a caterpillar that turns into a butterfly, leading to this pollinator station where visitors can plant and tend flowers.
At Kouts, 'we had a ton of volunteers,' Butz said. He recalled a child 7 or 8 years old using a shovel as the finishing touches were being put in place.
'This wasn't a professionally designed garden. This was our team,' Butz said.
When it was time to plant the flowers, the staff pitched in. 'Dawn was calling everybody she knew,' branch librarian Jack Lipski said, to get volunteers to pitch in when the flowers arrived. 'She does amazing things here,' Lipski said.
Even before the grand opening, Ailes began using the garden for children's programming.
Porter County Commissioner Barb Regnitz is enchanted with the garden. 'Libraries are magical. They transport you to places that are only limited by your imagination,' she said.
'This is just an outstanding library, a beautiful place,' Commissioner Ed Morales said.
Porter County Council President Andy Vasquez is no stranger to the library. 'If you don't think something's happening down here in south county, come on down to Kouts,' he said.
Lipski said when it was time to plan the library garden with Butz and Ailes, he was excited. 'I didn't know how we were going to do this, but we did it.'
'A lot of it was planning it out,' Lipski said. The town granted permission for the fence to be closer to the road than normally would be allowed, a way to keep kids safe from traffic as they roam the garden. A couple of them had already climbed on the pig sculpture before the garden was officially dedicated.
'This town needs something to bring in more people. This town needs this. The library needs this,' Lipski said. 'There's so much growth potential down here.'
'I love south county. I couldn't imagine being the branch manager anywhere else,' he said. 'I like to go and spread the good news of Kouts.'
During the grand opening, a German band played loudly in the library. The volume didn't bother Lipski. He doesn't shush patrons as a stereotypical librarian might. 'The library is for them,' he said.
Next on the library system's agenda is the Hebron location, Butz said.
Hebron's library is on a tiny lot, which limits what can be put in place there. Behind the Hebron police station, a story trail is already in place, Butz said.
The Hebron Redevelopment Commission donated $28,000 for an in-ground grand piano so children will be able to step on the keys and play notes, Lipski said.
'Donors can make a big difference,' Butz said. Features at the Kouts location already in place can still be sponsored, he said.