Amelia Givin Library, PA

We are seeing our community and library users support us as never before-through increased donations and support of fundraisers. The one bright thing to all this!

Chillicothe and Ross County Public Library, OH

We passed a one-mill, five year operating levy in May of 2010. We will
begin receiving that money, approximately $1 million per year, in 2011. That
gets us back to 2001 funding levels. We plan to re-open our closed branch,
and restore some but not all of our service hours and staff positions at that
time. We have to wait until the July 2011 Ohio state budget passes before we
see whether we are able to restore any more services and positions.

Findlay-Hancock County Public Library, OH

The citizens of Hancock County approved a 1/2 mill 5-year library levy on May 4th, 2010. Hours and services will be restored in 2011.

Grandville Heights Public Library, OH

Circulation is still increasing; even more people are using the library -- in
person and online; numbers are up for programs and summer reading clubs; our
recent library levy passed, 76.5%. Being a member of a consortium (CLC),
helps us "weather the storm" and enables us to provide new services

Harford County Public Library, MD

As a result of the recent budget cuts, the library developed a comprehensive advocacy plan that included year round community advocacy. The Strategic Plan for HCPL includes three goals with one goal area focusing on advocacy. The library implemented the advocacy action plan and as a result had a record number of people from the community attending county budget hearings, county council meetings, and other public venues testifying on behalf of the library and the essential resources and services it provides to the community. The library provided talking points, facts, and suggested how they can support the library by telling the county decision makers why the library is important to them and their community. In addition, information was provided on how to contact their representatives and attending local meetings. The library filmed community members sharing their stories about Harford County Public Library and launched these video casts on its Communities Thrive @ Your Library website.

Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library, IN

We have been getting the city involved with demonstrations, letter writing campaigns, etc. The Mayor of Indianapolis has convened a team of volunteers from city government and local businesses to examine the library's budget and find ways to keep the branches open. The library board has postponed their decision two months now and is due to decide in August 2010.

Neighborhoods around the branches that are facing possible closure have gotten very active, holding read-ins, marches, and letter writing campaigns. The library board convened two public meetings which were highly attended and the public has been a presence at all library board meetings and city/county council meetings pertaining to the library

Josephine Community Libraries, Inc., OR

Josephine County, Oregon experienced the economic downturn earlier than the rest of the country. In May 2007, after years of dwindling budgets and the failure of a ballot initiative to institute a library taxing district, all four branches of the Josephine County library system were closed due to lack of funds leaving 82,000 Oregonians without any access to a public library system whatsoever. Concerned citizens, unwilling to allow their community to be without a public library, responded in August 2007 by incorporating under the name Josephine Community Libraries, Inc. (JCLI) as a non-profit 501(c)3.

Josephine Community Libraries set about raising funds to reopen the libraries with a unique approach modeled on public television and public radio, in which we offered membership to the library but assured that everyone would have access, regardless of membership status. By December 2008, enough money had been raised to reopen the Grants Pass (main) branch. The group also met a $300,000 matching grant from the Josephine County Board of Commissioners. Building on the success of the Grants Pass opening, in 2009 JCLI further held to our mission of reopening all four libraries in the former county library service area, with the Illinois Vally branch reopened on September 5, the Williams branch on November 7, and Wolf Creek on December 19.

Reopening the libraries is only half of JCLI’s mission; we have also pledged to operate the libraries in Josephine County for generations to come. This means that JCLI is also looking for ways to ensure that the libraries in our community have long-term, sustainable funding. Taking that responsibility seriously, the board of directors has determined to support a political action committee that will work towards placing a special library district on the ballot in 2012.

New Cumberland Public Library, PA

Our county library system has kept up a steady stream of publicity about the cuts and also highlighted our plight on our website.
Customers of our community have been very supportive and understand that we have been forced to cust hours because of the lack of state funding. A local beekeeper and loyal customer gave the library 100 jars of honey to sell and keep all the money!

Newcomerstown Public Library (OH)

Bestselling authors, Elizabeth Berg and Jane Hamilton are teaming up to make
a big difference for the people in Newcomerstown, Ohio by helping them keep
their library open.

“Too many libraries are being closed, due to cuts in the budget. Let’s
keep this one alive,” Says Elizabeth Berg on her website. Elizabeth Berg learned about the plight of the small library when children’s librarian, Jennifer Coventry, contacted her to ask Berg to
write a letter about the importance of libraries that could be auctioned off to raise funds for the financially troubled library. Elizabeth Berg offered to do one better. She contacted her friend Jane Hamilton who is also a bestselling author and planned a “road trip” to hold a fundraiser to help
the library that serves a little over 6,000 users in rural central Ohio.  Raven’s Glenn Restaurant and Winery offered the use of their banquet   facilities for the fundraiser to be held Wednesday, September 8th, 6-9pm.  The local Hampton donated a night’s staff for the two authors who plan to
travel some 400 miles to help the Newcomerstown Public Library.  Both Elizabeth Berg and Jane Hamilton have achieved critical acclaim along  with bestseller status.

Elizabeth Berg’s Durable Goods and Joy School were both selected as
American Library Association Best Book of the Year. Talk Before Sleep was
shortlisted for the Abby (American Bookseller’s Book of the Year). Open
House was an Oprah’s Book Club Selection. In 1997, Elizabeth won the New
England Booksellers Award for her body of work. She was made a “literary
light” by the Boston Public Library, has been honored by the Chicago Public
Library, and was given the AMC Cancer Research Center’s Illuminator Award
for shedding light on breast cancer resulting in increased public awareness
and concern. Her most recent book is The Last Time I Saw You (April 2010).
Elizabeth was a registered nurse for ten years and she says that it was her
“school for writing—taking care of patients taught me a lot about human
nature, about hope and fear and love and loss and regret and triumph and
especially about relationships--all things that I tend to focus on in my
work. “ Elizabeth Berg lives “mostly in Chicago” with an “excellent
dog” named Homer and a cat named Gracie.

Jane Hamilton lives, works, and writes in an orchard farmhouse in Wisconsin.
Her short stories have appeared in Harper's magazine. Her first novel, The
Book of Ruth, won the PEN/Ernest Hemingway Foundation Award for best first
novel and was a selection of the Oprah Book Club. Her second novel, A Map of
the World, was an international bestseller.

Tickets for the event cost $30 per person. Tickets are available at the
Newcomerstown Public Library and can also be purchased by mail by sending a
self addressed stamped envelope to: Author Event C/O Friends of the
Newcomerstown Public Library, 123 North Bridge Street, Newcomerstown, Ohio
43832. Tickets must be purchased by September 1st so adequate food can be
prepared for the buffet-style dinner. No tickets will be available at the
door.

Elizabeth Berg is giving away 10 copies of her books on tape at the event
including her latest novel, The Last Time I Saw You and encourages her fans
to pitch in.

“Please come if you can,” Berg says. “If you can’t, and you care
about libraries, send a donation, no matter how small to the library. Every
dollar counts!”

Pasco County Library System, FL

This plan is the result of the community responding to the proposed budget of
closing one branch, the Centennial Park branch. See :
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/aug/28/pa-popular-librarys-final-chapter/

Phoenix Public Libraries, AZ

All 6 libraries were saved, however with limited hours and each branch is closed a minimum of one day a week, some are closed two days a week.

Phoenix Public Library, AZ

The Friends of the Phoenix Public Library successfully rallied community support to save 6 of our libraries from closure earlier this year. We expected to lose 6 of 16 libraries in our system in April, but after months of grassroots, community support, we were able to convince our city council to keep all 6 branches open, with a moderate reduction in hours to all 16.

Rio Rancho Public Library, NM

We have been permitted to fill one half-time circulation position that would normally have been frozen -- recognition that patron usage has increased while our staffing has decreased. The library director has publicized the increased demand for our services very effectively with city management.

Shippensburg Public Library, PA

Continuing with an expansion project which the community supports.

Tuscararas County Public Library, OH

Here in Ohio, the OLC and libraries did a tremendous job to avoid even deeper
cuts to Ohio's funding of public libraries. The Governor's recommendation
was for 30% reduction on top of the 18-20% reduction we knew we would
experience due to the state's reduction in its general fund. When this news
broke, the OLC got the word out, libraries put forth efforts to SAVE OHIO
LIBRARIES, and the community rallied behind the libraries and shared with
their legislators how important their libraries are to them. Consequently,
Ohio's libraries did not experience cuts as deep as first proposed. For that
we are grateful. This also heightened awareness of libraries throughout our
state. During this time, we were in the news, on the radio, talking to our
supporters, and planning Chalk One Up for the Library events at our library.

As we learn to live in this new reality, we are proactively seeking
alternative funding to supplement our library budget. Our efforts have been
successful as our community foundations and individual donors support our
library sytem. With limited resources, we still moved forward with an
elevator modernization project that was funded solely through grant dollars
and donations. Our Friends groups have sponsored Dining to Donate events at
area restaurants to build public awareness and provide additional dollars for
material purchases. We were one of the recipients of our local mall's
Magical Night of Giving fundraiser event, and our local bookstore made us a
recipient of donations of new materials from their customers. A homeschool
student won an essay contest and donated his winnings to the library to
purchase nonfiction materials. The community has been very supportive.

Warren Public Libraries, MI

The millage proposal was approved by a vote of 13, 478 to 7, 298.

GREAT NEWS - The Busch, Burnette and Miller Branches are now open!

Wayne County Libraries, WV

Recent lobbying of the Wayne County Commission brought the promise of an
additional $10,000 in funding.

Wright Memorial Public Library, OH

In November, Oakwood voters approved a new five-year 0.5 mill levy, which will offset a portion of the lost state revenue. Starting in 2010, the new levy will bring in an additional $158,000 each year. This is expected to be enough to keep the Library from having to reduce hours, barring further losses of state funding.