 On The Line -- Issue 631 -- April 20, 2007  Online News and Views of Life in San Benito County with Herman Wrede Published by HollisterOnline.com -- Copyright 1995-2008 HollisterOnline.com
|
|
On The Line -- Issue 631 -- April 20, 2007 Online News and Views of Life in San Benito County with Herman Wrede Published by HollisterOnline.com -- Copyright 1995-2008 HollisterOnline.com
|
|
The public library system is one of our greatest national institutions. It is second only to schools in educating people at no charge and offers expanded knowledge on a great number of topics.
Benjamin Franklin is credited with establishing the free public library even before England's American colonies became a sovereign nation. The library offered books to young and old, and from the beginning offered an atmosphere that invited the pursuit of knowledge and/or pleasure. It was Franklin's belief that a comfortable facility with books would attract readers who may be beyond school age but without the rote-learning followed by so many teachers of the times. As the young nation grew, more and more libraries were started for the benefit of the public. Many families that had little money beyond the necessities of life and could not afford to buy books could still read them without the cost. Andrew Carnegie came from Scotland while young and after building a fortune by the railroad applied himself diligently to the production of steel. He became one of the richest men in the world. Carnegie had profited greatly from the use of a library as a boy and determined that others could also gain self-enrichment through that path. So he set up a system of libraries around the country and in other nations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Among them was one in Hollister that later became the community's City Hall. The country was receptive to his idea because must people had come to realize the benefit if libraries as advanced education centers. Communities that applied for his libraries had to show that there was a need for them and that the people wanted them. Through the years the county library in Hollister has moved from its original site and expanded. In the 1970s Jo Wahdan became librarian and introduced many improvements including making the local facility part of an Internet web site and starting the Friends of the Library. The Friends, or FOL, is just what its name says. Its members have conferred with the librarian and staff to help determine what direction the library is taking, what it needs, and public services it could add. The local FOL has demonstrated its usefulness many times and is rightly looked upon as a valuable adjunct to the library. It went through a trial of fire some years back when the county Board of Supervisors determined to close the library for a year to help balance the county budget. It had turned over the proverbial hornets' nest. FOL members and other friends of the library rallied behind Mrs. Wahdan to face the threat. The crisis was weathered but the library -- the stepchild of county government -- found its hours and staff cut back. Volunteers staffed some of the positions and the FOL and others talked to many people throughout the community about the necessity of keeping the facility alive. Their loyalty was tempered and tested in fire. So it is little wonder that the FOL's members are more than just pleasant people to each other. They are fellow veterans in the good fight, and they enjoy each other's company all the more for that reason. So on Wednesday, April 18, during National Library Week, the turnout for the annual announcement of the Outstanding Volunteer of the Year, coupled with a potluck dinner, was very good. Greeting attendees in the lobby were Carlos Munoz, a library employee, and Joyce Young, a member of Friends of the Library. Betty Mason paused for a moment to talk with them before continuing on. Among those there early in the Barbara Memorial Room were Bill and Harriet Brin and Ruth Erickson. Mary Schneider, FOL president, was also there with husband Franz Schneider to help arrange the food on the buffet tables and to greet guests as they arrived. Pauline Valdivia, a member of the Hollister City Council and a supporter of the library, found a seat along the wall and struck up conversations with many of her friends, which she has in large numbers wherever she goes. Angie Rush seemed pleased to see old friends and to make new ones. She and Mrs. Valdivia talked animatedly for a few minutes before each turned to mingle with other arrivals. By then the food was well placed along the tables, with pasta, several types of casseroles, a pot of chicken stew, cheeses, potato chips, crackers, salsa, dips, and raw fruit and vegetables. A large bowl of punch and an urn of coffee stood nearby, along with cake. As the guests streamed along both sides ot the tables, taking this or selecting that, David and Nancy Talchinski carried on a conversation with John and Dotty Kerkvliet and Veldon and Diane Levenich. The diners repaired to the library proper, which had closed before the potluck began, and sat at tables where late library patrons had been reading. Brian and Amy Kimura found congenial tablemats and Forest and Jillian Wilson with children Jackson and Simon brought their own congeniality. It was a pleasant period of good food and excellent conversation with Carole Willette, Adele Pimentel and Stephanie Lane enjoying the cuisine and the talk. John and Dilia Gamez, and Bob and Christeen Kennedy also kept up their ends with the men doing well in the eating department and the ladies equally so in the conversation. Mrs. Schneider as president addressed the group, then librarian Nora Conte, escorted that evening by husband Pat Conte, took the floor. She spoke of her six months here as librarian and of the excellent staff and the many volunteers. Then she announced that the Volunteer of the Year was none other than Mary Schneider. Mrs. Schneider has given of herself over the years to Friends of the Library, to Community Pantry, the Homeless Shelter and to other organizations, and does so unstintingly. A number of other people were awarded library tote bags in recognition of the work they have done for the community through the library. All in all, it was a successful evening and one that made the volunteers even closer than they had been. |
 |
