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Annual Report
Fiscal Year 2001-2002 Library hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays from noon to 7 P.M. (closed 3:30-4); Saturdays from 10 A.M. to noon. The phone number is 5588. Board of Trustees: Pam Arel, chair; Colleen O'Connell, treasurer; David Morse, secretary; Walter Mendoza; Karen Appleton. Yearly Statistics:
Patrons: 1,949
The past fiscal year, I completed 110 hours worth of credits. I successfully completed DOL workshops in consumer health resources, legal reference, library administration, programming for children, cataloging, and filing. In September I took part in the New England Library Association Conference in Burlington, where I attended nine NELA workshops in three days. I also joined the Vermont Library Association, a coalition that advocates for Vermont libraries. DOL staff obligingly came to our library on four occasions the past year, offering encouragement and guidance. I had no experience when I began, and welcomed each visit as an opportunity to better understand my job and the librarys role in the community. I had many questions. DOL was patient and accommodating, and I want to thank everyone there. Reading Public Library again met standards for library service in the State of Vermont. The requirements are determined by the Department of Libraries and must be met in order for participating libraries to be eligible for DOL grants. By meeting standards, we can receive cataloging cards for up to 1000 titles at no cost. In addition, we are able to use the Vermont Automated Library System and Web2, both of which allow me to stay connected via e-mail to schools and libraries throughout the state, and to search for and borrow materials for the benefit of patrons here in Reading. Web2 also gives patrons access to databases containing full-text information that would not otherwise be available at the library. In 2001-2002 the library provided thirty-one programs for adults and children. The trustees and the volunteers and I have worked to shape the library into a commons area. This has become our most important objective. In the age of the Internet, when information can be pulled from outer space directly into our living rooms, a place is needed where people can engage with their neighbors; where children can gather and connect with one another and with their community by way of stories, songs, tomfoolery, and instruction; and where those who cannot afford or cannot use the new technology can come and get the materials they need. Along with nineteen preschool story hours, other programs included two visits by the 1st & 2nd grade class; a play performed at the library by the 3rd & 4th grade class, with the entire school attending; a visit to the school by the librarian; a pumpkin-carving party; pumpkin-lighting on Halloween night, with candy handed out to more than 100 children; four meetings of an adult book-discussion group, who read and reviewed several novels; and the kickoff of our summer reading program for children. In conjunction with our responsibility to provide programming and materials to the people of Reading, the trustees and I are committed to the maintenance of the building itself. Our library is 103 years old. Though only 1077 square feet, it is a historic building, a gem in the village. The gorgeous interior woodwork, handcrafted, has been admired by nearly everyone coming into the library. In February 2002 the interior was enriched by the unmasking of the original oak flooring. In the 1950s asphalt tiles were put down. We had the tiles removed and the wood refinished. This act along with the installation of softer fluorescent bulbs has warmed and brightened the space considerably. The librarians desk, crafted in 1875, was in sorry shape. With money from the Board of Trustees and several donors, we were able to get the desk spruced up and in usable order. The original screen doors, wasting away in the cellar, were cleaned, repaired, and put back on the hinges for use during warm-weather months. Sliding glass doors, discovered in the attic, were repositioned in front of the bookshelves of the Vermont section, to both protect and highlight the books. The clutter was removed from the main floor of the library, enabling us to create a reading room near the fireplace. And the oil lamps on the mantle were cleaned and filled and now burn for a couple of hours during winter evenings. The children's room also got some attention. The steps have been refinished, the bulwark cleaned and pointed, the doors and table painted. A dehumidifier has been running continuously to fight moisture and improve air quality. A decorative rug was purchased for the room by the Friends of the Library. And some lovely prints, buried in a drawer, were unearthed, framed, and hung. Few of the accomplishments of the past year would have been possible without the aid of the several people who volunteered their efforts: Junior Sanderson; Marjorie Swain; Barbara Acuna; Tina Miller; Lisa Kaija, who coordinated and directed most of the childrens programming; and Jane Cleveland, who contributed more than 200 hours of service. With her help, I was able to reorganize all the books and tapes in the library. Many were out of order and spilling from the shelves. We alphabetized the materials, created space enough on each shelf to make browsing easier and to provide for new acquisitions, and shored up what we had with book supports. We also updated the patron list and entered the names into the computer, tracked down most of the overdue books, some of which had been missing for months or years, and created a policy for getting materials back into the library in a timely manner. The card catalog has become our most important undertaking. We have been combing through, card by card, also checking the shelves to see that for every card there is a book. Cards for which there are no books are being pulled. We have worked our way into the Ss and have pulled several hundred cards. Once we have finished, patrons will search the card catalog with confidence, knowing that if a card is there for a book that is needed, the book itself will more than likely be available. Jane also helped out with the two book sales the library held in an attempt to raise much needed funds. I want to thank all who volunteered, gave money, donated materials, or offered kind words the past year. You are greatly appreciated. And I want to especially thank the trustees. These five stewards have been nothing but supportive. They leave no room for squabbling or questionable motives when it comes to library business, as was made clear when we integrated the several old, half-finished drafts of library policy into a clean directive for the future. It was evident that their sole concern was to do what was best for the library and for the community. It has been a joy to work for them, and for you.
Cordially,
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