Dear Neighbor,

Earlier this year, one of our favorite young patrons walked in beaming and told the librarian, “I can read now!” She chose a book from our early reader section and proceeded to read it aloud from beginning to end. “See?” she asked proudly. What a heart-warming moment!  She then checked out nearly a dozen more and exclaimed, “I’ll bet I can read all of these in one day!”

When you read a book as a child, it becomes a part of who you are, a part of your identity, unlike any other reading you might do as an adult. And so, we’ve transformed our children’s area into an enchanting space with comfy reading nooks and LOTS of brand new books for emerging and newly independent readers. We’ve added a collection of Spanish and bilingual books, as well as board and card games, fun learning kits, and lots of space to display books and spark curiosity. Our summer reading program this year featured a reading contest, a storyteller, a dance workshop, and even a snow cone party with live music and prizes!

We held our immensely popular weekly Magic the Gathering gathering (see what I did there?) all summer long and started a weekly toddlers & preschoolers storytime. We’ve extended our hours on Thursdays and are now open 11am-7pm. And, thanks to our volunteers, Saturday mornings at the library are back!

Check out these statistics from the past year:

• 59 new patrons
• 3350 patron visits (75% more than 2021)
• Over 4000 checkouts
• 1250 digital checkouts
• 476 interlibrary loans
• 8 museum passes used over 30 times
• 16 themed kits checked out 40 times
• 621 new items added to the collection

And we can do it all because of donors like you.

Because of donors like you, Baxter is able to provide the community with digital literacy assistance; opportunities for job training and placement; resources for exploring nearly any interest, from astronomy to Zumba; hundreds of new books, movies, and audiobooks each year; cherished community programs; and access to digital resources including ebooks, digital audiobooks, online classes, databases, and periodical subscriptions – all for free to everyone.

We are inspired by our community’s generosity and are so grateful for the support we receive from our annual town appropriation, the efforts of our many volunteers who donate their time and energy, and the legacy of generosity represented by our endowment. Still, we rely on your annual gift as a crucial source of income to meet our operating needs. Your contribution ensures that our services and resources remain available to the entire community. And so, we ask that you join with your friends and neighbors in making a gift to Baxter Memorial Library. Any amount helps and is gratefully received.

Thank you for considering Baxter Memorial Library in your annual giving.  Please send donations to P.O. Box 87, Sharon, VT 05065. Gifts to the library are tax deductible.

Sincerely,

The BML Trustees: Emma Basham, Marian Weatherbee, Kit Hood, Laura DeCapua, and Sandy Johnston; and Library Director Shana Hickman