Friends’ Annual Book Sale Is a Big Success Customers of all ages made this year’s sale a hit! F F F R R R I I I E E E N N N D D D S S S o o o f f f t t h h e e T T T O O O W W WS S S O O O N N N L L L I I I B B B R R R A A A R R R Y Y Y MAY 2011 VOL. 10, NO. 3 to pay the balance of its pledge to the library. Without equivocation, the success of this year’s book sale is due to the hard work and long hours, sometimes days, of a team of more than two dozen dedicated volunteers. FOTL expresses its heart-felt thanks to Nora Kotula and her crew, who labored to sort books, stack sale tables and replenish tables as books were sold, staff the checkout counter, and clean up after the sale. It was truly a labor of love -- love of the library and of books. Many volunteers were customers too, finding treasures for their own collections. It may seem trite to say, but is still very true, we couldn’t have done it without you and all the customers who purchased books! Among the volunteers who helped throughout the year collecting and sorting books as well as those who helped during the sale were: Edie Blum, Tasia Cavas Amelia and Fay Citerone, Sue Cornish, Charles Cottrell, Please see Volunteers, page 3 The Friends of the Towson Library (FOTL) book sale which ran for four days at the library, ending Sunday, April 17, grossed $13,314 in sales, which was substantially higher than the past three years. In 2010, sales were $12,590, in 2009, $10,909 and $9,035 in 2008. This year’s net after sales tax and expenses was $11,808. According to Friends’ member Pat Fraher, more than 8,500 donated books, CDs, DVDs and tapes were available for the sale this year. The materials that did not sell were donated to The Book Thing, a free book distributor in Baltimore. Friends’ Treasurer Susan Gillette remarked, “I think the rainy weather is good for library business and book sale visits. I believe the 2009 sale was on picture-perfect or even hot days, and 2010 weather was more iffy. This year a drenched Saturday apparently drove hordes to the library.” The good results from this year will enable FOTL
Without equivocation, the success of this year’s book sale is due to the hard work and long hours, sometimes days, of a team of more than two dozen dedicated volunteers. FOTL expresses its heart-felt thanks to Nora Kotula and her crew, who labored to sort books, stack sale tables and replenish tables as books were sold, staff the checkout counter, and clean up after the sale. It was truly a labor of love -- love of the library and of books. Many volunteers were customers too, finding treasures for their own collections. It may seem trite to say, but is still very true, we couldn’t have done it without you and all the customers who purchased books! Among the volunteers who helped throughout the year collecting and sorting books as well as those who helped during the sale were: Edie Blum, Tasia Cavas Amelia and Fay Citerone, Sue Cornish, Charles Cottrell,
Please see Volunteers, page 3
The Friends of the Towson Library (FOTL) book sale which ran for four days at the library, ending Sunday, April 17, grossed $13,314 in sales, which was substantially higher than the past three years. In 2010, sales were $12,590, in 2009, $10,909 and $9,035 in 2008. This year’s net after sales tax and expenses was $11,808. According to Friends’ member Pat Fraher, more than 8,500 donated books, CDs, DVDs and tapes were available for the sale this year. The materials that did not sell were donated to The Book Thing, a free book distributor in Baltimore. Friends’ Treasurer Susan Gillette remarked, “I think the rainy weather is good for library business and book sale visits. I believe the 2009 sale was on picture-perfect or even hot days, and 2010 weather was more iffy. This year a drenched Saturday apparently drove hordes to the library.”
The good results from this year will enable FOTL
A book sale customer has his hands full!
FROM THE MANAGER OF THE TOWSON LIBRARY
Early in April we were happy to drop the curtain at our fiction wing and reveal the new layout, carpet, modern shelving and lighting for the collections housed there. We were also especially pleased to offer the new service of two study/conference rooms available in the old large-type area, and open to the public for two-hour time slots. Signup is required, and is on a first-come, first-served basis. The rooms offer a more private setting than the other group meeting space we have upstairs on the Mezzanine.
Other improvements we expect to have this fiscal year will be individual carrels with electric outlets for laptop users, thanks to the generous Friends funding this year.
Kudos to the Friends Book Sale Committee, especially to leaders Pat Fraher and Nora Kotula, for the most successful book sale ever. This October through mid-March project was the Friends’ 17th and it gets bigger and better every year.
I hope to see you at the Annual Meeting in May.
Jennifer C. Haire
Nominations to the
FOTL Board At the annual meeting on May 3, the FOTL will vote on the following nominations: Officers for a one year term from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2012: President - Patricia Fraher 1st Vice President - Fay Citerone 2nd Vice President - Judy Gregory Secretary - James Ransom Treasurer - Susan Gillette. Renomination of present board members to a 3-year term starting July 1, 2011: Dorothy Fraquelli and Clarence Reisler. Pat Fraher presented three names to be new board members to a three-year term starting July 1, 2011: Katie McGuire, Lee Starkey, and
Mary Lou Stenchly.
Volunteers, from page 1
Pat Fraher, Dorothy Fraquelli, Susan Gillette, Anne Groth, Judy Gregory, Nora Kotula, Art Lynch, Eve McGovern, Marta Mills, Laura Merkle, Hannah Pickworth, Jim Ransom, Clarence Reisler, Dot Seim, Lee Starkey, D&L VanWye, Susan Ward, and E Wilbur. Many thanks also to photographers John Peige and Sally Foster for sharing their wonderful talent with us.
At left, Towson University student Justen Davis carried
hundreds of boxes of books to help the Friends set up
for the book sale.
Below, on opening night on Thursday, April 14, dozens
of book lovers lined up for the first-choice books.
The power of books to spark imagination ‘When I was a tadpole there was really only one thing that I collected. I had a file of newspaper and magazine articles on Frogs in Show Business. It was a small collection, but I think it influenced me a lot.’ – Kermit (the frog) from It’s Not Easy Being Green by Jim Henson, 2005, Hyperion, NewYork.
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The end of the Friends’ year is quickly coming to a close. Our annual business meeting is on Tuesday, May 3, 2011 in the Towson Room on the ground floor of the library. Officers and board members will be elected. At 7 p.m., hear our speakers
Eleanor Randrup and Katherine Kenny, authors
of “Courageous Women of Maryland.” Copies of their book will be available for purchase and the authors have agreed to inscribe copies for attendees. Light refreshments will be served. Please come and help us close out the 2010-2011 year. As you will read elsewhere in the newsletter, the Book Sale was a big success, grossing more than any previous book sale. It also added another data point to the correlation of poor weather and good book sale results. Thanks to Nora Kotula and Pat Fraher, who chaired this year’s book sale committee, and to all our board members and volunteers who helped sort books, set up for the sale on Wednesday evening and staffed the sale.
In late April, the Friends’ presented four gifts of $25 each to Towson Library volunteers at the Annual Volunteer Luncheon. These gifts were given in lieu of the Marianne Westcott award. In May, the Friends will be represented at the Ribbon Cutting for the renovated Towson Library. If you have not visited the library recently, please do so. You can admire the new meeting rooms, carpet, shelving and lighting in the fiction and reading groom areas. FOTL has been the recipient of a number of news articles in the Towson Times and in the on-line newspaper the Towson Patch. Articles on the book sale, the garden and the speakers for our May meeting have been recently published. Thank you for your support throughout the year.
