Howland Public Library staff, from left, Ethel Lee, Ai-Ping Ma, and Richard Jewell welcome Food for Fines donations to benefit the New Vision Church Food Pantry at the Beacon Community Resource Center. (Photo courtesy of HPL)
Howland Public Library staff, from left, Ethel Lee, Ai-Ping Ma, and Richard Jewell welcome Food for Fines donations to benefit the New Vision Church Food Pantry at the Beacon Community Resource Center. (Photo courtesy of HPL)

From now until the end of the year, Howland Public Library will accept food in lieu of fines for overdue library materials. Donations of nonperishable goods, such as canned tuna and bags of rice, will be accepted as payment of fines owed on books, DVDs, and other items. Food for Fines doesn’t apply to fees for lost or damaged materials or long-overdue items from other libraries.

For obvious reasons, HPL can’t accept homemade food, no matter how delicious. Donations will benefit our neighbors who rely upon the New Vision Church Food Pantry at the Beacon Community Resource Center.

Return overdue HPL materials with nonperishable goods this holiday season. Or donate food to cover overdue fines for HPL items already returned.  There’s no limit on the number of items you can donate. Fine free? Your donations are good here, too.  Everyone is encouraged to give.

Help your neighbors. Help yourselves. Happy holidays from Howland Public Library, 313 Main St., Beacon. Contact Fanny Keaton at [email protected] or call 845-831-1134.

Behind The Story

Type: News

News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

Articles attributed to "staff" are written by the editor or a senior editor. This is typically because they are brief items based on a single source, such as a press release, or there are multiple contributors, such as a collection of photos.