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SAN JUAN ISLAND LIBRARY |
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Friends of Library
I want to draw a little attention to the recently mailed Friends of the Library membership renewals in the mail. First and foremost I want to thank everyone who has already sent in their annual membership dues and to those who are going to mail it in before the end of the year. I recently attended a workshop on fundraising for small non-profits taught by Bob Schwartzberg brought here by Nonprofits Unlimited and the Friday Harbor Labs with special support from the San Juan Island Community Foundation and learned many important things about fundraising including the critical importance of recognizing and thanking supporters. So, THANK YOU! The Friends is the library’s support organization that "promotes, encourages, and enhances the work of the San Juan Island Library." They are a non-profit tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization which means anything you donate is tax deductible. Its mission is to focus public attention on the library and to support the library in developing library services and facilities for our community. The Friends annual fundraising efforts are the July used book sale, ferry landing book sales, holiday book sale, Treasure Cove (their in-library store) sales, and membership dues. However, the membership dues have brought in more income than all other fundraising efforts combined. I cannot stress enough how crucial the money that comes to the library through our Friends group is to maintaining the high level of services and programs we provide. The money they raise fills in the gap where the library's budget would fall short, or where public funds are not allowed to be used. One of the biggest and most effective things they fund is our children and teen summer reading programs. Because of the money raised by the Friends we get to have a better and stronger program than a library of our size typically could. Study after study shows how vital reading over the summer is to success in school, and I have informally been told a number of times a particular child would not have read at all during the summer if it wasn’t for the library’s summer reading program. If you are like me and love to just be at home, a hidden benefit of becoming a member is there is no obligation to attend a function. Just send in your check and cash in on the great feeling of supporting something that is important to you and your community. A second benefit of membership is getting first dibs on the books at the annual July used book sale. Each year the sale is open on Friday evening exclusively to members and it is only on Saturday after members have had their pick that everyone else gets to shop. I have already sent in my check to support the library because I believe in the importance of the programs and services they fund. Please feel free to contact me at 378-2798 if you have any questions. And thanks again for your support!
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