Melissa Melendez, resident of Lindale, TX leads children in a story during story time at the Lindale ibrary. At left Whitney King and her son, Judd King joined in as well as Tyson Nutter, Sandra Massey and Nathanael Miles

1. Donor helps Lindale Library stay open

LINDALE — Little Judd King loves the man with a guitar each week at the Lindale Public Library. The 2 1/2-year old is a frequent visitor at the library’s Friday story times.

His mother Whitney King, 29, said they have attended the weekly event that involves listening to a story and singing along to songs before a snack, craft and some play time.

Her son leaves with books in tow, but that activity may come to an end in March if the library does not meet fundraising goals.

Library Director Carrie Custer said the library already has reduced its budget from $168,000 last year to $143,000 this year through salary and program cuts, but she’s afraid they can’t cut anymore.

The city of Lindale donates $40,000 annually, leaving the remaining $103,000 to be raised through donations and fundraisers.

Coming up with capital has been difficult for the library since it lost a key donor several years ago and individual donations have declined over the years. Mrs. Custer said the library made it through the last two years by pulling 10 to 15 percent of its budget out of savings, but now the situation is dire.

She said the library has been one donation away from closure for several months, and the staff is looking for a permanent solution.

She estimated that with the money currently on hand, the library could operate for another two to three months. She hopes that a surge in donations could give library leadership the time it needs to develop a long term funding solution.

“There are smart business-minded people to make sure the money is being spent properly — this isn’t a result of waste or mismanagement — it’s just not enough (funding) for what the community is demanding of our services,” said Chris Custer, volunteer IT director at the library.

The library was one of 11 in Texas named by the magazine Library Journal as a Star Library. The ranking factors in circulation per capita, library visits, program attendance and computer use.

Chris Custer said library needs to fundraise a large amount of money, but it’s not an impossible sum. The library has more than 17,000 members, 5,500 of which are active by coming in at least once a month. Custer said if everyone on the list gave $10, the library would meet its budget

Staff said they have considered charging out of town users, but with only about 800 of the total members living out of district, the amount that could be raised is not worth paying a staff member to manage the record keeping that would require.

The staff will host a community meeting on Thursday to brainstorm ways to fundraise and keep the library doors open.

The discussion will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the library, 200 E. Hubbard St.

In the meantime, a gofundme was set up for anyone wishing to donate online. The library is a 501C3, making donations tax-deductible. visit www.gofundme.com/savelindalelibrary.

 

A COMMUNITY GATHERING PLACE

The Lindale Library is open Tuesday through Friday. Staff say Tuesdays are one of the busiest days, especially for computer use, where patrons take turns checking email, writing resumes and researching after a long weekend.

Chris Custer said the computers are in use 60 to 70 percent of the time they are available.

“We do a lot of … helping people with resumes,” Mrs. Custer said. “Many applications are online now, and we are seeing a lot of people coming in that don’t know how to set up email. … It’s not just books, it’s computer literacy as well that awe are providing.”

Another big day is Friday morning for story day, but with just over 92,000 visits in 2014, there is always some activity in the library. Often outside the library too, as people often stop by to soak up some the Wi-Fi.

The bustling activity happens inside the city limits of Lindale, but the library isn’t city run.

Although the city of Lindale contributes $40,000 annually, it does not own the library, which is managed by a nonprofit board of directors.

Mayor Robert Nelson said the city is a supporter of the library, but because it serves people outside the city limits, taking it over is not an option.

“I think the city would be more than happy to look at avenues to help and continue to sponsor it, but as far as city taking over, there’s a lot of consequence that could happen …” he said. “We are there to look out for the city and be financially responsible. The library is a district-wide library, and it doesn’t just serve the residents of Lindale, but the residents of the district. If we were to take on the burden, it would be unfair to our residents who pay property taxes and we are footing the bill for a library that’s district wide.”

Nelson said he is proud of the library and wants to see it remain open but can’t support using public funds to keep the lights on.

Stan Surratt, superintendent of Lindale Independent School District, said the mission of the library and the school go hand-in-hand. Early literacy programs, family literacy and English as a second language, among others, benefit all in the area and ultimately create a more enriched community.

“Everyone is in need of reading on a daily basis for the rest of their life,” he said. “I think it is very important as a community to join together to do what we can to keep the library open and functional for this community.”

The district has discussed helping, but no official fundraising efforts have started.

“THE GREAT EQUALIZERS”

Jeanne Standley, executive director of The University of Texas at Tyler’s Robert R. Muntz Library has described libraries as “The great equalizer in the community.”

“If you go back to the history of libraries, even in the days of Benjamin Franklin — the first lending library — the libraries were for the common man who couldn’t go to the universities.”

Ms. Standley said some people are still without Internet or the knowledge to set up an email, and libraries help bridge that gap in addition to the books on the shelves.

“East Texas still has connectivity issues in the rural areas for access to online, and unless you can afford to pay for the higher bandwidth, libraries help the user figure out what the best resources are, and they help guide users in research,” she said.

A 2013 Pew Research Center highlighted how Americans view their public libraries, and particularly how they would feel if theirs closed.

Some 90 percent of people older than 16 said closing their library would have an impact on their community, the study reads, and 63 percent of those said that impact would be major.

On the personal side, 67 percent said it would affect them and their families, with 29 percent of those labeling that impact as major.

Ninety-five percent of respondents also valued the resources available and said they promoted literacy and reading. The opinions on how the libraries improve the quality of life was also high, at 94 percent, and 81 percent responded the population the libraries serve would have a hard time replacing their services.

The study, however, did note there were varying degrees of enthusiasm for the institutions.

A 2005 study of Smith County Libraries showed the Lindale Library had the highest circulation in the county with 16.4 per capita.

The study, compiled by the Tyler/Smith County League of Women Voters was the last local study conducted.

The study also compared local libraries to national standards. The study showed Lindale was comprehensive in terms of circulation per capita, service hours and levels of paid staffing to support those hours. It also met basic standards for the percent of their budgets spent on their collections.