(Jan/Feb 05 activity)

• Jan 3 –5 – Book sorting in the Friends area with assistance of Mrs. Hunt. Donations had overtaken the room. Friends looking for new sorters.

• 1/5/06 – NELA Conference planning committee meeting – Worcester MA. I’ve been asked to be on the planning committee for the fall conference in Burlington, VT.

• 1/8/06 – Friends book sale and Southern Rail Concert. Good turnout for both.

• 1/9/06 – Somebody has dumped their household items in our rubbish dumpster filling it up. Police called and individuals discovered. They came back and emptied their stuff. Locks have been placed on the dumpster and recycle bins.

• 1/9/06 – Department head meeting.

• 1/11/06 – Electrician in to repair light in front of service desk that smoked in the fall.

• 1/12/06 – Employee Assistance Program meetings for all staff today.

• Continued weeding of nonfiction collection. Am now in the 600s.

• 1/17/06 – Meet with Frank Feist. He is working with Town Hall to develop better way of tracking budgets and forecasting future expenses.

• 1/18/06 – Plumber in to repair faucets in upstairs bathrooms.

• 1/18/06 – Elevator routine quarterly maintenance performed.

• 1/23/06 – Had to call for plowing. Parking lot was not done from Sunday’s blizzard.

• January and February Book orders completed.

• January DVD order completed.

• 2/2/06 – Meet with Millis Library Director – tour of Millis library.

• 2/3/06 – Heavy rains create leaks in large windows in children’s area. Walter has re-caulked the frames. Hopeful that this will solve problem. Same thing with staff room window.

• 2/6-2/8/06 – Director on vacation

• 2/9/06 – Meet with Town Administrator – she asks for 3-year projection budgets.

• 2/9/06 – Walter Mahoney announces retirement.

• 2/10/06 – Keyes North Atlantic in to do quarterly service – They seem to have been fairly responsive this winter and, as requested, are sending out the same technician.

• 2/13/06 – Department Head meeting.

• 2/14/06 – Meet with Metro-west regional administrator regarding long range planning.

• 2/15/06 – Meet with Town Administrator to discuss 3-year budget submissions.

• 2/15/06 – Membership meeting at Minuteman

• 2/15/06 – Meet with Selectmen Scott and Rozanski at the library. Wendy and Maryann present.

• 2/16/06 – State elevator inspection – We passed.

• 2/17/06 – Department head meeting.

Report of the Medway Public Library 2005

In 1994, Isaac Asimov wrote, “I received the fundamentals of my education in school, but that was not enough. My real education, the superstructure, the details, the true architecture, I got out of the public library. For an impoverished child whose family could not afford to buy books, the library was the open door to wonder and achievement, and I can never be sufficiently grateful that I had the wit to charge through that door and make the most of it. Now, when I read constantly about the way in which library funds are being cut and cut, I can only think that the door is closing and that American society has found one more way to destroy itself.”

This past year, “the door” of the Medway Public Library has closed a great deal. Drastic budget cuts have resulted in a loss of staffing, service hours, programs and resources. These reductions totaled 22% of the library budget and are stretching remaining staff and resources to their limits.

Staffing changes caused by the budget reduction were most difficult for the library to handle. Muriel Bulman retired after 17 years of dedicated library service. Her position was eliminated. Sandra Faist, a seven year employee, and Renee Hake, who served for four years, were each laid off. The loss of these positions resulted in the library closing its doors entirely on weekends as well as Monday and Wednesday evenings. In all, staff time has been cut 63 hours and the number of people working at the library has been reduced to levels not seen since the late 1980s.

When compared with 2004, the library is open fifteen hours less per week. These reduced hours not only make it difficult for students and other patrons to get the materials they need, but also impacts the many groups using the library’s meeting rooms since there are no longer enough open hours to host popular evening meetings.

In the fall, the library, in order to maintain State Certification, had to apply for a waiver from the State. The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners granted the waiver allowing Medway residents the continued opportunity to borrow materials from other Massachusetts libraries. The library is also able to receive over $18,000 in State grant funds and maintains its eligibility to apply for other federal and state grants.

Despite these cutbacks, business at the library continues to be strong though reduced from prior years. In all, nearly 154,000 items were borrowed from the library. This includes all DVD’s, books, audio and magazines. The meeting rooms were booked 322 times last year by such groups as girl scouts, Medway Players, Medway Community Education and Friends of Choate Park. Computers also continued to show their popularity with Internet terminals booked more than 120 times per week. All of this business shows that residents continue to view the library as a vital part of the community.

Children’s services make up nearly half of the total library business. In 2005, 1900 children participated in 122 programs held at the library. 250 children took part in the summer reading program. Programs held included Pre-school Powerhouse, Books and Cooks, American Girl Tea Time and Wee Ones Lapsit.

The Friends of Medway Library continue to provide much needed support to the library, supplementing many of the programs and services. The Friends provided funding for all children’s programs, many books, audios, DVD’s and music CD’s. Museum passes also continued to be funded by this group including Roger Williams Park Zoo, Boston Children’s Museum and Museum of Science. These services would have been cut this year had not the Friends of Medway Library funded them. We continue to thank them for their immense support.

A large and loyal group of volunteers assist the library staff on a daily basis. These hard working people finish the tasks that library staff are unable to get to including shelving of materials and making copies. Volunteers include members of the senior tax relief program, Medway High and King Philip students and members of the Medway community. Combined, they put in well over a thousand hours a year of service every day that the library is open. We thank them deeply for all they do.

Finally, the library staff deserves a large thank you for their hard work and dedication. Despite the persistent funding issues faced by the Town and library, each and every one of them gives their all to bring the highest quality service to the people of Medway. They continue to strive to make Medway Public Library the educational, recreational and cultural center it truly is for the community.

Full Funding Budget (Level service)