It was meant as a tiny outpost of learning fit for the memory of a dedicated teacher. However, it’s no longer a mere outpost.

Margit Novack’s Little Free Library in Ardmore has become an oft-visited neighborhood destination.

“She put out bubbles and a jumbo pink refill bottle. Sticker rolls and bookmarks, too. Colorful pinwheels to decorate. Games with cones and hoops for kids to play as they passed,” Maria Panaritis wrote in a Philadelphia Inquirer feature. “Kids gobbled it up. She started buying more stuff. And more. And more.”

And with every passing smile, giggle, and twinkle of an eye, love for a lost son-in-law swells up inside.

Matt Lautenschlager “would be pleased” with that Little Free Library in Ardmore.

The Collegeville man died of stomach cancer after a far-too-short, eight-week whirlwind of diagnosis and treatment.

“He had a heart of gold,” his wife and Novack’s daughter, Arwyn, said.

Now his legacy continues in Ardmore.

Read more about the phenomenon of Ardmore’s Little Free Library in the Philadelphia Inquirer here.