{"id":66795,"date":"2025-07-15T06:01:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T06:01:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/66795\/"},"modified":"2025-07-15T06:01:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-15T06:01:14","slug":"family-of-boy-who-loved-to-give-creates-library-to-share-books-toys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/66795\/","title":{"rendered":"Family of boy who loved to give creates library to share books & toys"},"content":{"rendered":"

Freddie’s Fun House will honor the legacy of 5-year-old Freddie Solum.<\/p>\n

MINNEAPOLIS \u2014 Upon moving to south Minneapolis, it was one of the first things they noticed. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere’s just these little libraries all over,\u201d Lauren Solum says.<\/p>\n

Lauren\u2019s son, Freddie, loved the libraries. Born with a natural curiosity, Freddie saw them as chests filled with hidden treasure.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, we would of course have to stop at every single one and look inside of them,\u201d Lauren says.<\/p>\n

But how disappointed Freddie would be when the libraries were missing kids’ books.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cPretty bummed, started complaining a lot,\u201d Lauren says. \u201cWe’d have to find the next library to see if there was something else in there for him.\u201d<\/p>\n

For a year now, the neighborhood libraries have been missing Freddie.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was 5,\u201d Freddie\u2019s father, Mike Solum, says. \u201cHe turned 5 shortly after he began chemo in the hospital.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lauren and Mike lost their only son last July.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was diagnosed with Burkitt Lymphoma,\u201d Freddie\u2019s mom says. \u201cAnd it was a brutal eight months to say the least.\u201d<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

Now the boy who craved children’s books is going to be making sure his neighborhood never runs out of them. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the house,\u201d Freddie\u2019s dad says as he carries a freshly painted little library down the driveway. \u00a0\u201cThis is the fun house.\u201d<\/p>\n

As Lauren looks on, her husband and father-in-law install the library in front of the Solum home.<\/p>\n

Minutes later, Freddie\u2019s mom returns with precious cargo. \u201cWe brought our first bag of books,\u201d Lauren says.<\/p>\n

They are the books Freddie loved to read.<\/p>\n

Lovingly, Lauren, and Hattie, Freddie\u2019s 4-year-old sister, stock the library.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2019Bruce the Bear\u2019 books were Freddie’s favorite,\u201d Lauren says as she hands a book to Hattie to put on the shelf.<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

As much as Freddie enjoyed reading, he also loved sharing.<\/p>\n

Freddie\u2019s sharing will now extend to kids he didn\u2019t even know.<\/p>\n

\u2018\u201cHow to Train a Porcupine,\u2019\u201d Lauren reads from the cover of one of her son\u2019s books. \u201cThat’s how Freddie learned to go potty.\u201d Hattie giggles as the book joins the others.<\/p>\n

Freddie also craved collecting, sorting, and giving away tiny toys, which he called his \u201ctrinkets.\u201d<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

Freddie\u2019s father looks at a large assortment of trinkets laid out on Freddie\u2019s still-made bed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the fun house warehouse,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Freddie’s Fun House was designed with an attic for Freddie to also continue sharing his trinkets.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cJust keeping that spirit going,\u201d Lauren says. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Margaret Munson of Children\u2019s Minnesota, who works with families of children in hospice and palliative care, suggested the library. She also found a carpenter who volunteered to build it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Recognizing the tenderness of the moment, all four of Freddie\u2019s grandparents stand back a bit as Lauren, Mike, and Hattie put the last of Freddie\u2019s books and toys in place.<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

It hasn\u2019t been easy the past year grieving the loss of a grandson so loved.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was such a good little boy,\u201d Tracy Westhoff, Lauren\u2019s mother, says. \u201cHe didn’t deserve this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Yet, Freddie more than deserves the library that now bears his name.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat’s what we want to keep doing, is spreading joy in his name and in his honor,\u201d Lauren says.<\/p>\n

\u201cGood job, Hattie,\u201d Lauren tells Freddie\u2019s sister once the job of loading the library is complete.<\/p>\n

With that, Freddie\u2019s sister, parents, and grandparents join hands, count down, and then raise arms toward the heavens.<\/p>\n

\u201cFreddie!\u201d they say in unison.<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

Editor’s note: To further honor their son, Freddie’s parents have created a foundation to support Children’s Minnesota, Make-a-Wish and cancer research.\u00a0For more information, click here.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

Boyd Huppert is always looking for great stories to share in the Land of 10,000 Stories! Send us your suggestions by filling out this form.<\/p>\n


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