CALEDONIA—When Shelley Harrison and her family moved to Caledonia 19 years ago, the library was one of their favourite spots in town to visit.
“Our son was three and we spent hours at the library and even more time at home reading the books we borrowed,” she said.
Harrison’s affection for the library hasn’t waned over the years.
“I love going through the shelves to find my next great read. The library offers so much more than books – there is an abundance of programming for all ages, much of which is free to library users. I wanted to be able to provide help to raise funds to enhance the programs and services the library offers this town.”
While Ontario libraries get the bulk of their funding from the municipality and a bit from the province, Harrison noted, “A budget only goes so far in any organization.”
Things like extra supplies for programming and new furniture generally has to wait for additional funding to become available. That’s where Friends of the Library groups come in.
Harrison said she’s wanted to start a Friends of the Library group in Caledonia for a while, but it was just recently when she changed jobs that her schedule opened up enough that she could take the project on. After she met with Haldimand County staff, there was a public meeting in February, and Harrison was joined by three others.
“We all share tasks,” she said. “We will eventually formalize the group more, as all Friends groups do, but for now we are getting our feet wet and doing some planning. We are looking forward to expanding and welcoming new members to our chapter.”
The Caledonia group’s first fundraiser was during the townwide yard sale at the start of June.
“We had zero budget to start,” Harrison said, but a lot of people donated items for them to sell, and they were able to raise some money to launch their next fundraiser.
“You have to spend money to make money, typically,” Harrison said.
The new fundraiser is an ongoing Blind Date with a Book table at the branch, where patrons can purchase a new or gently used book for $5. The ‘blind date’ part is that the book is wrapped, with a brief description on it, so buyers will have an idea of what the book is about, but not actually know the title or author until after they make their purchase.
The group is also selling reusable tote bags with the library logo on them.
As for what other fundraisers the group will do, Harrison said that’s going to be part of the planning going forward as the members solidify their roles and goals; it’s also about determining what will work best for the group, whether that’s holding one or two large events per year, or several smaller ones throughout.
“I could see us doing a mix of both,” Harrison said, though the former might be a bit further down the road.
“It’s tricky for us to do a book sale on a grand scale like Dunnville” with the limited number of members they currently have, she said.
Haldimand County has two other Friends of the Library groups – Dunnville and Jarvis.
Harrison said she hopes the Caledonia group will eventually be able to connect with and learn a bit from the other two.
“I’m really interested in hearing from both of them.”
So, what’s the main project the group will be fundraising for first?
That’s going to be up to the Caledonia library staff, Harrison said.
“They know better than we do what they need,” she said, adding that the group will be taking its lead from the library to prioritize fundraising projects – though more Lego for the children’s programming is looking like an early contender to top the branch’s wish list.
If anyone is interested in supporting the group or becoming a member, the next public meeting will be on June 25 at 1 p.m. at the Caledonia branch; the group can also be reached via email at CaledoniaFOL@gmail.com for those who can’t make it in person.
“We meet monthly and try to adjust the days and times to accommodate various schedules,” Harrison said.
There are other ways to help out; the group is accepting donations of gently used books for the Blind Date with a Book fundraiser, as well as Lego and Duplo for children’s programming at the branch.
