The Howland Public Library gets by with a little help from our Friends — actually, we get by with a lot of help from our Friends! Our Friends of the Library group run the Beacon Reads used bookstore next to the library. Volunteers staff the store seven days a week — they take in donations, price and categorize the donations, keep the store open and in many ways act as ambassadors for the library and the city.
All the income generated supports library programs and services. Have you noticed our new end panels, checked out our museum passes, downloaded music through Freegal, participated in our programs? You can thank the Friends. The Friends has generously given funds to support the library and by extension the community for many years.
I’d like to specifically thank the Beacon Reads volunteers for their commitment and dedication to ensuring that Beacon has the best library possible. Many thanks to Ann Baumgartner, Maureen Cotter, Marisa Del Pozo Slick, Nady Domenico, Tony Frisian, Carman Johnson, Charlie Moser, Gwen Nerrie, Anne Sewing, Michael Schoenberg and co-managers Vicki Blucher and Marcia Frahman.
National Friends of Libraries Week continues through Oct. 21, making it a perfect time to for the staff and trustees of the Howland Public Library to give our Friends a big shout-out for all they do to make a difference for us every single day.
Amy Raff, Beacon
Raff is the Howland Library director.
