The Friends of the Berryville Library announced on April 1, the one-year anniversary of its groundbreaking, that the new library will host a Grand Opening on June 20 at its new location on 207 S. Springfield St.
April 1 was also the five-year anniversary of launching a capital campaign to build the new library without using tax revenues. That campaign was a roaring success, with three million dollars coming from local funding and another million from the office of U.S. Congressman Steve Womack.
It appears the April Fool’s Day history of pranking has become a no-fooling series of successes for the library. The only reason the Grand Opening won’t also be on April 1 is that the new site had never been built on before, and extra time was needed for leveling and unexpected groundwork.
Library Director Julie Hall commented, “These are such exciting times for the Berryville Library. The need for a new library has been talked about for well over thirty years now and, thanks to the Friends and the overwhelming generosity of our community, that dream is coming true.”
Due to donations over the last couple of months, the fundraising goal for new furnishings has been met and the community will be welcomed into a beautifully functional facility on June 20.
“It will be different in many ways,” Hall said, “but very nice.”
Exciting as it is, that dream can look a bit daunting the closer it gets. In addition to the physical work of packing and keeping thousands of books, CDs and movies in order, then moving, unpacking and shelving them in different rooms, there is also furniture, program materials, computers and office supplies to rehome in a larger space.
And that larger space, with its higher utilities and expanded service, will all be handled with the same staff and the same budget that keeps the current small library going. That’s the daunting part. Operating and running a much larger building on the library’s current operating budget will be a challenge.
So, to celebrate the library’s new home, and assure its longevity, the Friends have established the Berryville Library Endowment with the Carroll County Community Foundation. Donations to the new Berryville Library Endowment will build a forever fund so that the Friends can provide additional support to the library and help maintain the new library’s building and grounds for years to come.
If you’ve grabbed the Independent before Thursday evening, another way to invest is via NWA Gives Day, a regional 12-hour giving event from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, April 9. NWA Gives aims to help the nonprofits in the seven counties of Northwest Arkansas, and also helps donors find deserving local causes to support.
To support the Friends of the Berryville Library on NWA Gives Day, go to nwagives.org, click the Donate button and simply type Berryville in the search bar that appears. The library logo will pop up. Click there.
Gifts to the Berryville Library Endowment can be made at arcf.org/berryvillelibrary. Support to the endowment can come in many forms. If you’re interested in helping sustain the library’s future while exploring the tax benefits of planned giving, please contact the Carroll County Community Foundation at carrollcounty@arcf.org or call (479) 315-6425.
Tax-deductible donations can also be made directly to the Friends. Checks should be made payable to the Friends of the Berryville Library and can be mailed or dropped off at the library at 104 Spring St. Online donations are also accepted at berryvillelibrary.org/building.
To become a Friend of the Berryville Library, individual memberships start at just $10 per year, and forms are available at the library.
The Friends of the Berryville Library are thankful for the love and support shown during this April month of giving and urge everyone to celebrate these important milestones on the journey to provide a library that can meet the needs of Berryville’s growing community for generations to come by giving a gift to support the new library.