Friends of the Library Fall Book Sale Sets Yet Another Record
September 18, 2023 — The Friends of the Library Annual Fall Book Sale wrapped up on Sunday, setting a record as their second-best sale to date with $190,326 in just six days. The Sale started on Tuesday, Sept 12, with a preview night and ended at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Sept 17. What is more remarkable is that the sale is made up entirely of donated items.
Friends of the Library Treasurer Joyce Kastler said, “That makes this sale the second-best sale in our history. And not only that, this sale means the Friends of the Library raised more than $5.1 million for the Springfield –Greene County Library District since the very first sale was held on the parking lot of the Midtown Carnegie Branch in 1985. There are no words to adequately capture this accomplishment.”
Regina Greer Cooper, Library Executive Director, said, “You cannot find a more dedicated Friends of the Library group than ours. The sale is run completely by volunteers who haul items, sort and price them, and then staff the Book Sale twice a year. Our patrons and staff are indebted to this organization.” Before the Fall Book Sale, the group sorted and priced five and a half semi-trailers full of donated books in just five months. Cooper added, “This sale would not be possible without our generous community donating items each year.”
Proceeds from the bi-annual sale are used to fund special adult programs, the Summer Reading program, Wee-Read, which gives out books through the Parents as Teachers Program and many other library necessities. The Friends of the Library recently made a generous $200,000 gift to the Library Center auditorium construction project.
The public can donate used items at any of the 10 library branches during business hours. The next sale is April 24-28, 2024, with a four-hour Friends Night Preview Sale on April 23.