Giving Back

It's been a while since I've updated this blog, but on my furlough week from work I've had time to catch up on some things that I don't normally get to do, and updating this blog is one such thing. When thinking of what to write about, I started thinking about the meetings I've been involved in lately as part of the Cold Spring Friends of the Library, as we've met with local city council officers and members of the local DNR, Soil & Water Conservation District, Historical Society and Cold Spring Granite about the possibilities of grants towards a multipurpose building that would include a new library in town. I've been involved in this group for a few years now, and the main reason I do it is because it just feels good to give back to your community.

I've been using this library system since I started reading at age 3, and since my mom was already a member of the Friends group, it just seemed natural for me to get involved. I'm the one the group relies on to spread the word in local media outlets about our fund-raising projects, which I'm glad to do and help with as well. Our library has the 2nd highest circulation in the GRRL system, but is sorely in need of additional space for patrons and resource materials. We've been looking at possibilities of relocating into either a new or existing building, so it's exciting to finally pursue these grant opportunities that make our goal a lot closer to reality than we have been.

At a previous job, I was able to volunteer my time & talents to spreading the word about some great arts events all around us in Central Minnesota. When that opportunity ended, I still felt the need to volunteer, so I'm glad I got involved as a Friend of the Cold Spring Library. I would strongly recommend volunteering for anyone and everyone - just find a group that you enjoy and find out what it takes to volunteer or be a member. I'm sure you'll find the experiences very rewarding, plus you can feel good knowing you're helping your community.