National Friends of Libraries Week 2023!

October 15 to October 21 is National Friends of Libraries Week! We will be celebrating our Friends volunteers this week with special treats and visits to the Sort Site. You may also notice some fun shout-outs on social media. Here are a few fun facts about our Friends!

• Founded in 1978, the Friends helped start the Library Endowment Trust and have gifted over $6,000,000 in grants to the library system over the years.
• The Friends are governed by a nonprofit board of volunteers and run their book-selling operations from the east side of the Service Center building. They sell on eBay, Amazon, and ThriftBooks, and have in-person sales in the Metro.
• On average, 75 volunteers give 1,200 hours of time each month to manage Friends operations. The value of that time at the Sort Site equals approximately $461,000 annually! (And that doesn't include the additional 500+ volunteers at book sale events!)
• You think YOU have found weird things in library books... donated books have money, hair, funeral cards, love letters, bills, receipts, to-do lists, photographs, health results and dozens of other long-forgotten items Friends try to reconnect to donors when appropriate and possible.
• Friends membership is currently open and provides members with a quarterly newsletter as well as VIP member access to book sale events.

Learn more about our Friends at www.supportmls.org/fol. We are so grateful for their ongoing support!