Sean C. Morgan
Of The New Era
The Sweet Home Friends of the Library will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the opening of their bookstore on Feb. 16 with an open house, punch and cookies.
The bookstore, located on the north side of Main Street in the 1200 block, opened on Feb. 15, 2003, Friends President Diane Gerson said. Since then, Friends of the Library, an independent nonprofit organization, has raised a significant amount of money to supplement the Sweet Home Public Library budget.
“Last year, we cleared $5,000 for the library after expenses,” Gerson said. “I would consider that to be successful.”
Expenses include lights, gas, insurance and a small rent, Gerson said. Some years, the bookstore has made a little more or a little less.
The bookstore sells most used paperbacks for a quarter, and hardcover books cost a dollar or two. Its stock is supplied by donations, with books often donated back to the bookstore after they’re read.
“We’re kind of like Costco,” Gerson said. “You have to buy it when you see it. It might not be here next time.”
Volunteers keep the bookstore open, allowing books to be sold inexpensively to provide a revenue stream for the library.
“You can’t beat a quarter a book,” Gerson said.
The Friends have $17,000 to $18,000 saved to help pay for automating the library, Gerson said. “The library is in the process of talking to Albany so when we open (the automation) we’ll be able to interact.”
Automating has been an ongoing library project for years, Library Director Leona McCann said. The staff has been putting all new books into the database system for several years.
That still leaves a large part of the library’s collection that needs to be included in the computerized card catalogue and database, Gerson said, and the Friends will be looking for volunteers to help out with that. It would be a good opportunity for high school students to get their community service requirements done for graduation, she said.
“The biggest thing we’ve done since the store opened was the new stacks,” Gerson said.
The Friends also raised some $859 at their Christmas bazaar to pay for the summer children’s reading program, Gerson said. The Friends are hoping to double that with a grant from Wal-Mart.
The Friends also are saving money to help pay for a library expansion, Gerson said. The library building was designed to serve the population of Sweet Home for about 20 years. It is now almost 40 years old. The building is in good shape, but an expansion will be necessary.
The library has several ideas in the talking stages right now, Gerson said. “Right now automation is the top priority. We’re the only library in the county, maybe the state, that isn’t automated.”
Once that’s in place, patrons will be able to look up books located at other area libraries, she said.
As far as the bookstore is concerned, “we’re hoping to just stay here and do what we do, keep going,” Gerson said. It’s volunteers and the public that keep it going, people buying and returning books while volunteers man the shop itself.
“The volunteers keep it running, and the public keeps it going,” she said.
“It’s fun,” Friends of the Library volunteer Dot Gaspard said. “It’s a good place to make and meet new friends and get to know other people in the community.”
Anyone interested in volunteering or donating can contact Gerson at 367-2979 or Gretchen Schaleger at 367-2881. They can use whatever level of help is available, whether it’s once a month or once a week.
Store hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.