| Noreen Williams |
Library Board of Trustees meeting June 17, 2021
Head Librarian Lee Shaw reported that he and assistant librarian Emily Martin have been very busy with new programming, including the summer reading program and getting the word out on all of the things happening at the library. Special packets have been given to each young person who joins the summer program which encourages summer reading by awarding stickers for reading achievements and leads to great prizes. Registration for the Chewonki reading program has already begun. There are several new programs focused on youth including: Read to Mocha where they read to Mocha the Dog, a Thursday program called Crafty Kids, and Storytime with kids from the Rec program. Book groups for adults have also begun with one underway and another beginning in September.
Lee and Emily have been working on the publicity effort. The library Facebook page and website are up-to-date with all of the information on the youth and adult programs, and the library has been sharing it through NGX as well. The number of patrons has increased dramatically now that the library is open for in-person service with previous patrons coming in as well as 32 new patrons. Circulation has almost doubled between March-April (608 patrons) and May-June (1025 patrons). The Storytime attendance has also almost doubled.
In addition, people have been checking out the canoes and kayaks. Some patrons have been using the passes to local attractions but Lee and Emily would like to encourage more use.
The financial statement shows that the library budget is on track and has a small amount of residual unencumbered funds ($1,141) at the end of this fiscal year.
Carol Gillis reported that the Friends had their annual meeting in May and held elections. Kathleen Potter (president), Carol Gillis (vice-president), Annemarie Salzberg (treasurer), and Noreen Williams (secretary) will serve this year. The Friends have updated their bylaws and have formed a committee to prepare the 501c3 application for non-profit status for the Friends. They have not yet found a lawyer to take this on, but suggestions were offered. The Friends have provided the library with $1000 for programming and have allocated $325 for material for the library gardens. Laura Jane Sturgis was recognized as an honorary member for her contributions to the Friends and Library. There was some discussion about the Friends taking over magazine subscriptions for the library. Lee asked for suggestions on which magazines are popular with patrons. Roy from Public Works was recognized for his help with the library and gardens. The Friends will give $50 to the endowment fund in recognition of Kathleen D’Amboise for her years of work at the library. The next meeting of the Friends is July 7th at the Fire Station.
Chair of the Board of Trustees CeCe Sullivan Rohrbach reported that the budget ($111,395) passed in the recent election and included funds for programming and new computers.
A retirement gathering will be planned for the former Head Librarian Sue Hawkins, possibly during July and will be open to the community.
Corrections were made to the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Trustees and the Board of Selectman. These changes were approved and forwarded to the Board. There was a brief discussion of the MOU between the Library Trustees and the Friends of the Library. This will be the subject of discussion at a workshop and the next meeting of the Trustees.
Lee had previously raised the issue of Pownal and Durham residents using the library without charge. However, he and Emily now feel that they prefer not to have a fee for these patrons to better encourage reading by everyone. Others suggested that donations for the book sale come from these patrons as well as those from New Gloucester.
Board of Trustee memberships of Trustees CeCe Sullivan Rohrbach and Rob Cotiaux are up for renewal this June and they have submitted their applications.
The Trustees and Linda Chase, who has been the Select Board liaison, thanked each other for their work together for the benefit of the library.
The next meeting of the Trustees will be held on September 15, 2021 at the library.
