In spirit of the holiday season, Josephine County is now anticipating a community wide gift to be presented in the end of December. The re-opening of the main branch Josephine County Library! Russell Long, previous director of the del Norte County Library District in California, and current director of our library, wishes to extend his appreciation to our community for their participation.

With several significant grants from Oregon Community Foundation, Fourway Foundation, Zonta, business contributions, private donations, and annual member fees, the $395,000 available to re-open the library doors has ascended in just 18 short months. While further community contributions are needed to ensure the library’s security, the 1500 gold, silver, and platinum members thus far are anticipated to provide the majority of support required. However, a paying contribution is not mandatory to utilize the library. The building, and all of its assets are made available to paying and non-paying members.

In addition to the monetary support, the library also acknowledges gifts of books and any publications from late 2007 and 2008, in fair form. Where there is little need for older encyclopedias, or magazines, newer editions are greatly appreciated.

Russell expressed his excitement for the event, as well as for the new equipment being donated to the library. This includes a new phone system, new computers, and new library cards. While the library is used to spending close to a million dollars each year, the budget of just a little over half this amount is keeping the project running smoothly thus far. Now the focus for support is finding the best volunteer staff at hand. Positions are available on an interview basis, and any assistance is welcomed.

It is predicted that the soft opening will occur around December 20 of this year, and the grand opening sometime in the beginning of next year. Hours of operation may vary based on the availability of volunteers, however, it appears the hours will include late mornings, early afternoons, some evenings, and Saturdays.

“A happy book is a book checked out.” Russell eagerly stated. “The most important thing is that people use the library.”

For further information on volunteering or donations, contact the library at (541) 660-6531. Or visit the website at info@josephinelibrary.org . 

  -Miranda Mills