[Libs-Or] Congratulations! Governor's Volunteer Award Winner, Josephine Community Libraries

Tue Apr 1 14:32:23 PDT 2014

Roy Masters certainly has done a lot of damage, but the anti-tax fervor in
Josephine County predates him by quite a long time.  It's always been an
uphill battle.

*Jane Salisbury*
Supervisor, Library Outreach Services
Multnomah County Library
205 NE Russell
Portland, OR 97212

Phone: 503.988.4081  Website: www.multcolib.org

*janesa at multcolib.org <xxxxxxx at multcolib.org>*
www.multcolib.org

On Tue, Apr 1, 2014 at 2:24 PM, Connie Anderson-Cohoon <anderson at sou.edu>wrote:

> Hi MaryKay et. al.,
>
> Gosh...I've got really mixed feelings about this. Ever since I moved to
> Southern Oregon the libraries in Josephine County have struggled. I believe
> that Roy Masters had a great deal of influence in the county and was
> against raising taxes. See this article for some background:
> http://web.thedailycourier.com/eedition/2010/04/01/Progress/3.pdf.
>
> I imagine there are some that will conclude that you can run libraries
> with volunteers only but most of us know better than that. I fervently hope
> that Kate Lasky and all her volunteers are successful in passing a library
> levy. They have certainly worked hard to bring library services to the
> county and I celebrate their efforts.
>
> Best,
> Connie
>
>
> On Tue, Apr 1, 2014 at 2:00 PM, Caleb TUCKER-RAYMOND <calebt at multco.us>wrote:
>
>> MaryKay thanks for starting a discussion.
>>
>> 360 volunteers - wow! Even if no one is putting up any cash, that shows
>> an outstanding commitment to library service by the community.
>>
>> I worry of course that celebrating volunteer-run public libraries gives
>> legitimacy to the idea that we don't need to pay for them at all. But we
>> can't ignore the fact that volunteer libraries exist. If we want people to
>> fund libraries because publicly-funded libraries are better (for whatever
>> reason), the burden is on us to prove it.
>>
>>
>> Caleb Tucker-Raymond
>>
>> Statewide Reference Service Coordinator
>> Multnomah County Library
>> (503) 988-5438
>> calebt at multco.us
>> www.answerland.org
>>
>>
>> On Tue, Apr 1, 2014 at 11:44 AM, MaryKay Dahlgreen <
>> marykay.dahlgreen at state.or.us> wrote:
>>
>>>  Dear Colleagues,
>>>
>>> As I expected, there have been concerns expressed to me about
>>> celebrating this volunteer library.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> My perspective on this is that the citizens of Josephine County didn’t
>>> want to wait a great  length of time without library service, especially
>>> for their children. They are very up front about the fact that their
>>> current situation is unsustainable and are even now collecting signatures
>>> to put a library district on the ballot in November 2014. I like to think
>>> of the creation of the non-profit Josephine Community Libraries, Inc. as an
>>> emergency response and they have been building towards sustainability ever
>>> since.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> I would also guess that the none of the public libraries in Oregon would
>>> be able to function at their current level without volunteers, I know that
>>> OSL couldn’t.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> And finally, the political and financial situation in Josephine County
>>> is quite different than in other areas of Oregon, particularly the
>>> Willamette Valley.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> I think this is an important topic of discussion and would welcome other
>>> comments.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> MaryKay
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> *From:* Libs-Or [mailto:libs-or-bounces at listsmart.osl.state.or.us] *On
>>> Behalf Of *MaryKay Dahlgreen
>>> *Sent:* Monday, March 31, 2014 3:47 PM
>>> *To:* (libs-or at listsmart.osl.state.or.us)
>>> *Subject:* [Libs-Or] Congratulations! Governor's Volunteer Award
>>> Winner, Josephine Community Libraries
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> *Not-for-Profit Volunteer Program: *Josephine Community Libraries of
>>> Grants Pass
>>>
>>> Without the volunteers at Josephine Community Libraries, 83,000
>>> Oregonians wouldn’t have access to a public library. Josephine Community
>>> Libraries formed in fall 2007, after the county closed its libraries due to
>>> funding cuts and the failure of a ballot initiative for a library district.
>>> The nonprofit today operates all the county’s libraries, with volunteers
>>> filling core roles: cataloging and shelving books, providing information to
>>> library users, hosting children’s story times, checking books in and out,
>>> marketing, communications, fundraising, outreach, facilities maintenance
>>> and more. The system has 360 dedicated volunteers. About 2,500 patrons
>>> check out items from the libraries each month, and 1,700 patrons use the
>>> public Internet computers. The system also has special programs for
>>> children: First Steps for toddlers, K-9 Reading Buddies for young readers,
>>> story times and the Summer Reading Program. It also has the Expanding
>>> Opportunities Program, which provides deeper access to library resources
>>> and community partners, helping people improve their prospects in
>>> education, employment and entrepreneurship.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> For more information on the Governor’s Volunteer Awards:
>>> http://www.oregonvolunteers.org/
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> MaryKay Dahlgreen
>>>
>>> Oregon State Librarian
>>>
>>> 503-378-4367
>>>
>>> marykay.dahlgreen at state.or.us
>>>
>>> http://oregon.gov/osl
>>>
>>> [image: library logo.jpg]
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
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>> Questions related to message content should be directed to list owner(s)
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>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Connie Anderson-Cohoon
> Reference Services Coordinator
> Business/Economics Librarian
> Hannon Library
> Southern Oregon University
> Ashland, OR  97520
> anderson at sou.edu
> 541-552-6820 (Work)
> 541-552-6429 (Fax)
> 541-488-0799 (Home)
>
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> Questions related to message content should be directed to list owner(s)
> or the sender of the message, by phone or email.
> Technical questions? Call 503-378-8800.
>
>
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