December 2024
December 2024 Standard News article
By Gaylee Harris, Director
Montgomery City Public Library
“You’ve got a friend in me…” is a wonderful song from the movie Toy Story. It talks about how a friend supports another friend through good times and bad. Did you know that libraries need friends too?
The Montgomery City Public Library Friends of the Library is a small yet active 501(c) 3 organization that supports MCPL in a variety of ways. You probably know them best through the book sales that they host in the MCPL Community Room. The next book sale is coming up soon during Hometown Christmas on December 13 and 14. On Friday, December 13, MCPL Friends can shop early from 5-6 pm and then the public is welcome to shop from 6-8 pm. The book sale will be open to the public again from 9 am to 1 pm on Saturday, December 14. This will be a good time to get quality books at a great price to give as presents this holiday season.
Fundraising is an important aspect of the MCPL Friends of the Library. The money raised through membership dues, book sales, and other events go towards items that the library needs or wants that are outside of the budget. This year the Friends purchased two new chairs for the lobby. Not only are they nice looking, the chairs are comfortable and easy to clean. They brighten up the space too! Recently, the Friends bought a Cover One machine, which will repair the weakened spines of well-loved paperback and hardback books. It can also repair books with loose pages. Therefore, MCPL won’t have to purchase as many replacement books as before. Overall, this machine will save the library time and money.
The MCPL Friends also volunteer doing various tasks that help the library. They volunteered with the Library Board of Trustees to donate supplies and lead activities during the International Mud Day. They moved furniture when the carpets were cleaned earlier this year. In November, Friends assisted with the rearranging of the Adult Fiction and Adult Nonfiction books in the library. Other Friend volunteers order bookshelves, put away returned books, weed old books, and sanitize toys. A few Friend volunteers lead or assist with programming like Robotics, After Hours Teen Nights, and story time.
You might ask yourself, “What else does the MCPL Friends do?” Besides fundraising and volunteering at the library, they advocate for the library within the community and the state. They assist the library as it works to fulfill the community’s informational needs and contribute to library-wide projects and goals through careful administration of vested funds. MCPL Friends of the Library also support the creative efforts of the library staff to enrich the lives of the community. Future projects include another International Mud Day, Craft Swap, Mario Kart tournaments, remodeling the Community Room kitchen, and building a dedicated space for the Creation Station Maker Space.
Would you like to become a Friend of the Library? We hope so! You can pick up a Friend of the Library flyer at MCPL. You can also check out their Montgomery City Public Library Friends of the Library Facebook page or stop by the Dec. 13-14 Book Sale and speak to a Friend in person. Membership levels include Individual ($25), Family/Household ($75), Supporter ($250), Contributor ($500), and Benefactor ($1000). Special benefits and swag are available for each level. One [library] can never have too many friends!
We appreciate the generosity and support of the Montgomery City Public Library Friends of the Library and are excited to work with them on future MCPL endeavors. As the theme song from the Golden Girls says, “Thank you for being a friend…”