About the Library

Library Director: Helen Thomas
Phone: 518 284-3126 FAX: 518 284-3126
email: shs@mvls.info

Mission: The Sharon Springs Free Library is chartered to serve the residents of the Town of Sharon. Its mission is to operate a circulating library and to provide technological services necessary to the educational an dintellectual stimulation of the entire community. The library will also make reading areas and work stations available to both residents and visitors to the Town of Sharon.

The library loans fiction and non-fiction books, audio books, e-books, e-magazines and e-audio books as well as dvds. There are Adult, Large Type and Juvenile collections including picture and graphic books. Materials are regularly delivered from all the libraries in the Mohawk Valley Library System and the Southern Adirondack Library System and can be requested from outside these systems through Interlibrary Loan. The library provides free internet access 24/7 and public access computers during library hours. Printing, copying and faxing services are availalbe.

Library Board of Trustee Meeting Agenda 

Agenda

 ·        Call to Order

·        Approval of Minutes

·        Treasurer’s Report

·        President’s Report

·        Director’s Report

·        Privilege of the Floor

·        Committee Reports

o   Administration (Policy and Procedure)

o   Budget and Finance (Budget Preparation)

o   Collection Maintenance (Weeding)

o   Joint Facility (Village and Town Liaison)

o   Facility Maintenance (Building Repair and Maintenance)

o   Fundraising (Library Operations)

o   Executive (Officers)

o   Personnel

o   Material Selection (Choo0se books, DVs, etc.)

o   Nominating (Recruitment)

o   Publicity (Newsletter, advertisement, social media)

·        Old Business

·        New Business

·        Executive Session

·        Adjourn



Library Board of Trustee Minutes

2.25.2021


   Called to order 
7:04 pm with board members Jeanne Irwin, Patsy Nicosia, Gina Gilbert, Susan Rorick, Bob Fucci and Belinda Feris; staff Helen Thomas, Joanne Fralick, and Joyce Slater; and MVLS guest Eric Trahan

 

Minutes for 1.28.2021 approved: Susan/Bob.

 

Treasurer’s report: Accepted. Tonja is now on the bank account and treasurer.

 

President’s report/new business

Eric was on hand to present Gina with her 2020 Volunteer of the Year Award, delayed because of COVID.

He also explained some of our options for increasing funding through the town or school ballot.

We’re on the town ballot now; they just “collect” our funding for us. (This would also be the case with the school; neither has any say in what we do.)

There are deadlines for increasing our funding. Realistically, we’re too late to do this for November, so we’d be looking at 2022 ballot.

Getting on the school ballot instead would allow us to tap into a larger population—people in the school district who don’t live in the Town of Sharon.

That extra population would increase the funding we raise through taxes from $43,860 (I believe) to $52,890 without increasing taxes.

We agreed to reach out to Tony DiPace at SSCS once we’ve discussed this more.

 

Director’s report

Attached.

Update on Library Advocacy Day.

Helen is applying for a $3,000 grant from Assoc. of Small and Rural Communities “Can We Talk?” about race, with Cobleskill and Cherry Valley Libraries and Jen Field at SSCS, and a program beginning in July/August.

Updates on our other grants; Patsy suggested Helen do a workshop on grant-writing sometime for board members and possibly public. We could even suggest a “donation.”

We agreed to offer free food from food bank/Rotary in lobby.

 

Committees

-- Stinson Lock has fixed the door.

--No new checks from fundraising letter.

--Shed: Still stands there, taunting us.

--Patsy and Jeanne flipped extinguishers.

--Approved policies for library computers and copyright; Susan will provide a better suggested for investments at March meeting.

--Catskill Center for Independence and Rotary want to present at March meeting.

 

Adjourned9pm.

Director’s Report for March 25, 2021

Submitted by Helen Thomas

Participated in combined advocacy meeting with HVLS and MVLS and Assemblyman Tague. One of the hot issues now is library construction aid. It had been stagnant for 10 years but was raised in 2018 only to be cut by $20 M in 2020. Back to $45M requested in this year’s budget but there is also something brewing on the Federal level. Energy efficiency is an area of concern. We should follow this with an eye to replacing doors and windows. NYSED’s Division of Library Development estimates $1.5 B is needed statewide.

 Participated in MVLS Director’s Council 3/4/21

·         The new minimum standards are NOT optional and could result in loss of charter. The most important to work on are #2 (1, 3, 4, 5, and 6 all refer back to 2) and #11 (the expansion of information access). Board agenda, materials and minutes are supposed to be available within 2 weeks, 1 week if there is an executive session. (This means before they are approved at the next meeting.)

·         The MVLS Plan of Service and Free Direct Access for four counties will have to be approved by all of our boards. MVLS needs to answer 7 questions. Currently 28% of circ is outside our service areas. If it goes below 10% there can be penalties but there is an appeal process. Libraries are opening up. We welcomed Maria, new director at COB, Judy at Ft. Hunter. Pandemic response plans should be in place. MVLS has provided a template.

·         We meet again 4/1/21

Participated in MVLS Board meeting 3/18/21. They will not have an in person annual meeting again this year. We are not eligible to apply for vol of the year because we won it before. We met again 4/15.

Participated in NYLA Emergency Broad Band webinar 3/18/21. ($3.2 B Fed funding to provide $50/mo. toward people’s internet bill, but it’s complicated. This may become a reality in April.)

We requested a new NYS Tax Exempt Cert. When received, copies should be provided to each of us who buy things for the library.

 We are running our short story contest “Sharon Springs Free Library’s First Annual Springs Spring Writing Contest.” Rules have been in the library news, TJ, and are on our blog site. Entries are due by April 17. First prize is a Kindle Fire donated by Brimstone Bakery. Second Prize ($50 Stewarts card, third place $25– I thought we had these but we don’t) Winners to be announced April 30, Arbor Day.

We are now an arm of the food bank.

 We have the Rotary quilt on display and have been selling tickets.

Joye led book discussion this month. (7 participants)

NYS Annual Report submitted 3/18/21, one whole day early.

 JoAnn will be away on vacation the last week of April. Helen will be out of town May 4, 5, 6.

 Received the $800 requested from Stewarts for children’s programming. Looking at music man and Utica Zoomobile as possibilities.

MVLS is having a group order for computers which guarantees the best price. However, like last year, I am recommending that we do not buy any new computers now except possibly a staff computer. Previous practice was that we would buy one new one every year. We did not buy one last year. I am opposed to scrapping them after four years simply because JA will not support them if they break. We have looked at public PC use over the past three years. 2018 had 837 users, 2019 had 739 users, 2020 had 314 (no one is using 2020 stats for anything.) It looks like our 3 – 5 computers are used just over twice a day combined. That makes them very low mileage. Unless they become a security threat, I would like to continue to use them as long as possible. We have a safety net. Mike Gilbert has offered to try to repair if one breaks. I have also put in a grant request to Walmart that would provide funding for three new computers. If we get that funding, it will be a second safety net so we would be able to buy replacements if necessary. Keeping computers and internet access available to the public is of utmost importance. This is something that may become less critical in the future

March Grant Balances

Current Status of Grant Funding

                2019 MVLS Dream and Do Adult Programming funding $500                                         $150.

                ($200 on 2 jewelry classes, $150 used for Dogs- not Stewarts funding 3/6/21)

                2020 MVLS Dream and Do grant $500 furniture minus 98.98-chairs, $71.22

                For shades and $19.43 for lampshade                                                                                    309.37

                Walmart Furniture funding $900 – all spent for chairs                                                           0

                Advocacy grant for brochures $1400 total ($1260 rec’d remainder later)                 1260.

                Stewarts Make A Wish grant for children’s programming $800                                      800.

 

Grants submitted and pending

·         American Library Association Libraries Transforming Communities $3000.

·         Walmart – Cybergrants 2021 $2740 for 3 computers and training funds.