Friends group fundraises for library
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RONAN — After the Ronan City Library received a $13,000 anonymous donation, the Friends of the Ronan City Library are still fighting the good fight to keep the library open and fully funded.
Considering the budget cuts this year that have threatened the livelihood of the library, the patrons have their work cut out for them. Even after the $13,000 donation, the library is still $4,500 under budget for this fiscal year which will end on June 30.
For the Friends of the Library that met on Thursday afternoon, raising money doesn’t need to be a boring task. The ladies are ready and willing to have fun, while fighting for the beloved book-bearing institution.
On March 17 the Friends of the Library will march in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Clad in green and sporting large gaudy bookworms painted on plywood, the group hopes to splash a bit of luck on the seemingly dire straights of the library.
The six-foot long bookworms will then be placed in the yards of a few unsuspecting businesses, who will be required to donate $50 to have the pesky worm removed and placed in another business’ or resident’s yard.
“If anyone is offended, we aren’t going to make them pay,” Library Director Michelle Fenger said.
It’s a move that President of the Friends of the Library, Ann Violette, got from her son’s church in Missoula. In order to raise money for an orphanage, the church filled his yard with an array of pink flamingos. Church members were required to donate a few dollars to have the bright display removed.
She and the other members of the Friends of the Library group are banking on the generosity of the citizens of Ronan for financial help.
“In the past (community members) have opened their hearts and wallets … I don’t see how this is any different,” Violette said.
Besides worming their way into the hearts of community members, the group is also having a chair auction on Aug. 13. Complete with wine and cheese, the Friends of the Library will auction off the revamped, colorful garden chairs in the Ronan City Park. The group is accepting donations of old wooden chairs to be decorated or any chair that donors have decorated themselves.
The change jug that sits in the front of the library received its first donation at the meeting too.
The ladies at the meeting emptied their change purses to help get the jug started. But it’s going to take a lot of pocket change and a community full of generous individuals to reach the goal of $4,500.
The Friends of the Library meet every second Thursday of the month at 1:30 p.m. in the Ronan City Library.
For more information on giving to the library, call 676-3682.
