Alexandre-Aimée Baker
Special to the Tribune
Next time you pull up to the Lavigne Tavern for a cold drink, a slice of pizza, or some weekend live music, you will notice a vibrant new addition standing proudly outside the doors. It is a handcrafted, bright red little library designed to look exactly like the classic doghouse from Charlie Brown, complete with the beloved beagle, Snoopy, resting peacefully on the slanted roof.
While it looks like a playful design, this “Take One, Leave One” book stand actually holds a deeper meaning. It stands as a testament to a son’s love, a family’s fifty-year literary legacy, and a father who believed in the life-changing power of the written word. The structure is officially named the Bernard Bouffard Memorial Lending Library, a tribute to the father of Lavigne Tavern owner Daniel Bouffard. Speaking about his father’s legacy, Daniel reflects on how deeply the elder Bouffard believed in the quiet magic of a good book, noting how infectious that passion truly was. “He had friends who were not really into reading,” Daniel shares. “He got them all to read western stories and they all got into it and were all reading westerns.”