Buchanan District Library Fundraising Campaign for Second Floor Renovation

Submitted by Meg Paulette, Buchanan District Library Director

Buchanan, MI ~ November 17, 2022

Dear Patron,

It is with great excitement that I write to you this year (the fourth such letter I have written as library director—how time flies!) to announce the official start of our fundraising efforts for the renovation of the library’s second floor. You, one of our loyal supporters, have been with us throughout all the dreaming, gathering information, and strategic planning—and for that we are incredibly thankful. Below is more information about our plans, our goal, and how you can be a part of this important project.

As you may know, we recently completed a new Strategic Plan, a plan that will guide the library through the next five years. During our planning, it was easy to get carried away by the excitement of building plans and architectural renderings, but we were wisely reminded that our goals aren’t really about increasing square footage or installing new windows. Our true goal is to live up to our mission statement—to enrich the lives of our patrons and empower our community with knowledge and resources. 

“You can dream, create, design, and build the most wonderful place in the world. But it requires people to make the dream a reality.”  -Walt Disney

Our dream to realize this new space in our library requires YOU, but not just in the sense that we need support and donations to accomplish our goal. We need you because a library is more than just a building full of books. A library is a people—a community that cherishes the idea of curiosity, that holds dear the value of life-long learning, and upholds the rights we all have to explore our imagination and the world around us. Without you, there is no library.

We appreciate your support for our building campaign at any and all levels. Even more so, we appreciate your presence in our library. This has been a wonderful year, with a return to in-person programs and more people visiting our library everyday. We feel a renewed enthusiasm, and we owe it to our many wonderful patrons.

Thank you for being a part of our community and a part of OUR library.

Gratefully,

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Yes! I want to support the continued success and growth of the Buchanan District Library.

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A GENERAL DONATION

CLICK HERE TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE BUILDING CAMPAIGN

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Did you know you can make a RECURRING gift to the library? Small gifts add up over time and help support the library without putting a strain on your budget. Give in any monthly amount that works for you! Donate $5 or more a month and get an I Love My Library bumper sticker!

From a recurring donor to the Buchanan District Library:
Donating by automatic withdrawal is a good solution for those of us who mean well, but find ourselves without a lot of disposable time on our hand.  “Tomorrow,” we think, “I will sit down and write a check to the library.”  But, we, alas, forget.  Before long, it is downright embarrassing to think that we enjoy our library so much and yet, give to it so infrequently.  Two years ago, I pledged to give back to things I cherish—my country, the environment, and to my public library which has kept me as another entity says, informed, entertained, and inspired.  It is easy to set up an automatic donation directly from your bank by using a debit card or by using a credit card.  The donation comes out at the same time each month.  Best of all, you can stop being embarrassed and can feel good about “remembering” to give each month.  -Anonymous Library Donor

CLICK HERE TO MAKE A RECURRING DONATION TO THE LIBRARY

Choose Recurring Monthly from the drop down menu under the donation amount.

Thank you for supporting books, programs, and more at YOUR Library!

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WHAT DOES MY DONATION SUPPORT?

• TUTORING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BUCHANAN COMMUNITY SCHOOLS
  • This innovative new program connects students with qualified tutors to receive free academic support at the library. The program has shown measurable outcomes for the students, and strengthened the connection between the schools and the library.
• A WIDE VARIETY OF PROGRAMS, SUCH AS UKULELE CLUBS FOR KIDS & ADULTS
  • The library offers many programs for kids and adults, such as storytimes, adult crafts, author visits, documentary movie nights, and even ukulele programs that include the ability to check out an instrument from the library for the class.
• BRINGING OUR COMMUNITY TOGETHER
  • The library’s annual One Book | One Buchanan program brings our entire community together to read one book over and discuss it at an event with community leaders. 
• PRESERVING LOCAL HISTORY
  • The Buchanan District Library’s Local History Room endeavors to preserve, maintain and make accessible resources for the study of the history of the Buchanan area. Local History is also brought to life each year in the Remembering Buchanan Calendar.
• A LIBRARY OF THINGS OFFERING TOOLS, EQUIPMENT, GAMES, INSTRUMENTS, & MORE
  • This collection continues to grow and offer our patrons even more value with their library card. The Library of Things is a way for our community to share resources and expand the boundaries of what a library usually offers.

All of this is in addition to a collection of nearly 50,000 books, audiobooks, movies, and more, saving our patrons more than $600,000 annually by checking out items from the library rather than buying.

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