News Release

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

October 10, 2008 Jennifer Roberts, 441-3295

Doug Walker, 660-6531

Despite timber payment renewal, county reluctant to honor original pledge to library group

Grants Pass, October 10, 2008-When Congress passed a bailout plan that included a renewal of timber payments last week, the short-term financial outlook for Josephine County changed drastically. It seems that the only thing that hasn’t changed is the extent of the county’s willingness to help reopen the libraries in Josephine County.

In a press conference Wednesday, Commissioner Dwight Ellis indicated his reluctance, despite the reinstatement of timber payments, to increase the grant to the nonprofit group Josephine Community Libraries, a volunteer organization that has been working to reopen the libraries since its inception in September 2007.

Having signed up over 1200 members and launched a successful fundraising effort, Josephine Community Libraries has begun negotiations with the county to reopen and operate the library system, which the county closed in May 2007. JCLI has offered to assume responsibility for staffing, technological infrastructure, day-to-day operations, and collection building. The group recently also began interviewing candidates for a supervising librarian.

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Josephine Community Libraries, page 2

The Board of County Commissioners originally pledged a $300,000 matching fund grant in the fall of 2007. In May, the Budget Committee reversed that decision and reduced the grant to $100,000 ($75,000 of which can only be spent on libraries). Over the past several days, volunteers were led to believe that a request for the originally pledged $300,000 would be seriously considered.

Given the progress in recent negotiations, Ellis’s statement came as a surprise to JCLI volunteers and angered many. “I’m growing damn tired of JCLI being used as a political football. They keep using our success as an excuse to get out of their responsibility to fund a library. If you support this community having a library, then walk the walk,” said Doug Walker, president of the Board of Directors of Josephine Community Libraries.

Bonnie Johnson, chair of the Operations Committee of Josephine Community Libraries, agreed, also noting that if the group has sufficient funding when it opens, it has a much better chance of succeeding long-term. “The start-up costs are considerable, so if the county honors its original pledge, we have a much better shot at building a strong foundation for a community library,” she noted.

The libraries in Josephine County closed on May 17, 2007. In September 2007, committed community members formed Josephine Community Libraries, Inc., a nongovernmental, nonprofit organization dedicated to reopening and operating the libraries in Josephine County. People interested in getting involved with the library effort can send an e-mail to info@josephinelibrary.org. Those interested in becoming member can send their check or money order payable to “Josephine Community Libraries” to P.O. Box 1684, Grants Pass, OR 97528 or make a secure donation on the Web site, www.josephinelibrary.org.

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Josephine Community Libraries, Inc.

P.O. Box 1684 Grants Pass, OR 97528

541-660-6531

info@josephinelibrary.org www.josephinelibrary.org