The above words are the beginning of a poem written by 14-year-old Kwame Kinsel-Davis at the Martin Luther King Jr. Reading Center on Herron Avenue in the Hill District.

Although it is uncertain whether Kinsel-Davis will grow up to overshadow the profound and poetic oratory skills of the library’s namesake, one thing is certain—you won’t see the works of any 14-year-old Black males on Carnegie Library mantels or walls, regardless of which one you visit.

LEADING THE LEGACY— Betty Williams, Carrie Henderson, Calvin Bush and Yvonne Addison have all been heavily involved in keeping MLK’s legacy alive through working with youth at the reading center.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Reading Center has been able to outlast a lack of funding, being overlooked by the community and a drop in patronage in its 20 years of operation.

Tree trimmings, fashion shows and frequent visits from St. Benedict the Moor, A. Leo Weil and Robert L. Vann school children characterize the golden beginnings of the library.

The historic library, which began as a reading room on the corner of Milwaukee Street and Herron Avenue, has been fundraising like crazy and utilizing volunteers to keep the library doors open in its last two years.

And even with the lack of funding, the MLK reading center offers services unparallel to the Carnegie.  

While children at the Hill District branch library on Dinwiddie Street utilize computers for personal and academic use, children at the reading center are encouraged to work for computer time.

“When they come in we have a dictionary and a word for each age group. They have to know the meaning of the word before they can use the computers,” Williams said.

MLK reading center librarian Carrie Henderson also gets the children to write poetry and letters.

Additionally, the center offers adult computer classes, tutoring and anger management classes for students with parental permission. It will also host a Girl Scout troop beginning in February.

So the ladies were not about to let anyone take the library away.

“She told us she would board it up and walk away. We took them to court,” Williams said.

Both Williams and Yvonne Addison, also a board member, were in for the fight of their lives after Barbara Mistick, current director of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, denied the reading center funds to stay open back in 2006.

Addison said Mistick was unaware that Black people are used to fighting for what belongs to them.

“That day in the courthouse it was so crowded, there were so many people in the courtroom there was no where for the Carnegie Library folks to sit. They had to sit in the jury box,” Addison said.

The court ruled Carnegie Library would keep the reading center open for 45 more days so Williams and Addison could secure the lease from the city. However, the lack of funding proved detrimental.

“Because we sit back so far from the street, a lot of people don’t know we are open,” Addison said.

But last year state Rep. Jake Wheatley, himself a Hill resident, donated a sign to the reading center and the patronage has slowly improved. Former and current members of the community have also begun to donate monies to keep the center open.

The two ladies are also planning to kick off a major fund-raising effort this year, which marks the reading room’s 20th anniversary.

Other upcoming fundraising activities include an MLK holiday reception on Jan. 21, selling valentines on Feb. 14, and Mother’s Day baskets on May 11.

The Martin Luther King Reading Center is located at 636 Herron Ave. in the Hill District. For more information and operating hours, call 412-681-0461.