MEDIA CONTACT:
Jackie Powers
303-275-2203
jpowers@jefferson.lib.co.us
LOCAL DONATIONS HELP REBUILD LOUISIANA LIBRARY
Fundraisers provide much-needed holiday help to staff and aid in repairs
(Jefferson County, Colo. - Dec. 27, 2006) When Jefferson County Public Library (JCPL) staff learned about the devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the New Orleans area, they knew that they had to do something to help.
"There was something very appealing to me about helping library staff members who lost everything," said Carol Burdick, children's information librarian at Evergreen Library and hurricane task force member. "When you hear their personal stories, you just know you have to find a way to help."
This fall JCPL staff learned the Jefferson Parish North Kenner Library had a simple need - a place for staff to sit, eat their lunch and relax. Most of the furniture in their staff room was water logged and had to be thrown away, leaving just two chairs for the entire staff. JCPL jumped in raising money for a new couch.
"We sold book bags donating $1 of each sale-raising $625-just enough to buy the couch that library staff members had their eye on. We wanted to do more, so we made dozens of batches of brownies and sold tulip bulbs raising another $900 for holiday gift cards," said Jenna Obee, JCPL information services librarian.
Recently, Ellen Frost, JCPL technical support coordinator, and her husband Jack took time from their vacation to Frost's native Louisiana to hand-deliver 34 gift cards totaling $900, 20 handmade Christmas ornaments, JCPL t-shirts and gifts to staff at the North Kenner Library.
Mel Louviere, library branch manager, was overwhelmed by our generosity, said Frost. "He wouldn't let us leave with just a handshake; he had to hug us, and he made us promise to share his immense gratitude for remembering his staff."
At the North Kenner Library, Jefferson Parish Library’s largest branch, everything was damaged-walls, carpeting, bookshelves, desks, computers and books. While repairs have taken place at this branch and nine others, it could take years to fully recover.
"The only way this library, this community and these people can get back to "normal" is by replacing and rebuilding everything bit-by-bit," Frost said. "Having their libraries open again gives community members a sense of normalcy and silently tells them that things are going to be okay."
Earlier this year, JCPL Staff Association raised $750 selling book bags, contributing $1 per bag to the fund, which was sent to Jefferson Parish Library in the spring to assist with repairs. A cash drive in April brought in $1,056, which was used to purchase $20 gift cards for Jefferson Parish Library employees to replace some of the items they had lost.
Jefferson Parish Library, located in a suburb of New Orleans that lies on the southern shore of Lake Pontchartrain, lost about 150,000 materials, nearly 15 percent of its total collection, when Hurricanes Katrina and Rita swept through the area. Only two of Jefferson Parish Library’s 15 branches were spared, and seven received significant damage. Having undergone extensive repairs throughout the year, 10 libraries have reopened.
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About the Jefferson County Public Library
Jefferson County Public Library (JCPL) works to enrich the quality of life for all people in the county by providing resources for information, education and recreation. JCPL is the second largest library in the State of Colorado and in the Rocky Mountain region. More than 390,000 Jefferson County residents are library card holders. A JCPL library card is the key to a network of 10 libraries and a Bookmobile offering books, periodicals, CDs and DVDs, as well as computer and Internet resources. For more information contact your local library or the Jefferson County Public Library’s Public Information Office at (303) 275-2203 or visit http://jefferson.lib.co.us.
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