Preserving Trenton New Jersey's Libraries

Trenton (New Jersey) Public Library

Link to August 15 The Times of Trenton editorial, "Preserving the libraries".

Excerpt: But even a third of a million dollars will not cover the libraries' fixed costs very long. As Library Executive Director Kimberly Matthews explained, that sum may constitute a reprieve of just a few months.

It's a dire situation, but there are a few brightening spots.

First and foremost, Mayor Mack is obviously interested in making library services available throughout the city.

Second, there is the possibility of a major donor or two committing funds to restore those services at least on a limited basis.

And there are the efforts of the revitalized Friends of the Trenton Public Library, which has organized a fund-raising campaign to support the shuttered branches.

Finally, people are beginning to understand how vital public libraries are despite the proliferation of the internet. The vast blast of information crowding the web is often uncurated and unfounded; it's no match for the guidance of a librarian toward undisputed references and reliable sources.

Related article:
Board president laments closing of 4 branches.  (8/7/2010)

The Camden Free Public Library: "An oasis in the desert"

LINK

Link to August 15 column by Karen Heller in the Philadelphia Inquirer, "Camden should find funds for libraries before prisons".

Excerpt: The central branch of the Camden Free Public Library has a broken bathroom and water fountain. The second-floor ceiling is partially collapsed and the rug, severely stained. The lighting, especially on cloudy days, is abysmal.

The last new books arrived in March when the library ran out of funds and ceased paying utility bills. The 187,000-volume system has never been automated. Books are hand-stamped and checked out as they were 30 years ago. The sole van, to shuttle books and equipment to two smaller branches, has been busted for three years.

And yet, on a summer afternoon, this dilapidated institution is busy, vital, full.

Sixteen men engage in robust, near-athletic games of chess. The children's book department, decorated in Honeypot yellow and Tigger orange, hosts regular programs. In a city where many residents are without computers, the Federal Street branch's 19 terminals are in constant use, more than 2,200 visitors monthly looking for jobs and checking e-mail - and that's with the library closed on weekends. Librarians routinely assist residents with research projects, school papers, GED test prep, employment hunts.

The Federal Street library is one of the few free, safe, cool, conveniently situated sources of support, entertainment, and advancement in Camden.

The central branch is what libraries used to be in most towns, and what giant bookstores like Borders have become in the suburbs.

And in Camden, a small city with brutal big-city problems, there's nothing close to a Borders.

There's very little of anything.

"This," says librarian Wen Gu, "is an oasis in the desert.

Related articles:
Camden New Jersey squeeze play?  (8/11/2010)
Camden mayor plays an odd game of library advocacy.  (8/9/2010)
The library dumpster solution.  (8/6/2010)
Mayor proposes 70% cut in library funding.  (7/19/2010)

Waupaca Area Public Library One of 25 in U.S. to Host Lincoln Exhibit

Source:  The Abraham Lincoln Blog

Link to August 11 Waupaca Now article, "Lincoln exhibit comes to Waupaca."

Excerpt: An exhibit almost two years in the planning is set to open at the Waupaca Area Public Library.

"Lincoln: The Constitution and the Civil War" opens in the library’s exhibit room on Monday, Aug. 16, and runs through Sept. 25.

The Waupaca Area Public Library is the only library in Wisconsin that will host the touring exhibit from the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia.

Waupaca’s library is among the original 25 libraries that received a $2,400 grant from the American Library Association and National Endowment for the Humanities to pay for the exhibit. The library was asked to match those funds. An additional 25 libraries throughout the country have since been selected to host the Lincoln exhibit.