Happy Summer, Friends! Our big book sale is imminent, from July 31 st to August 2nd. I hope you can visit us and get great deals on books, DVDs, CDs, audio books, and puzzles. We have over 400 boxes of items to sell, and all proceeds go back into library, literacy, and community programs.
People ask about how we spend the money we collect through book sales and donations. Not surprisingly, we are first and foremost dedicated to the Castro Valley Library. While the Alameda County Library system funds staff, operating expenses, and some Library programs, the Library relies on the Friends to support a great number of programs throughout the year, such as CV Reads, children’s, teen, and adult programs, Bootlegger Program, as well as a stipend for interns. We have been able to fund all the Library requests for many years.
But there’s more. The Friends’ official purpose is: “To promote literacy, serve our community, and support the Castro Valley Library, by providing funds for library programs, organizing fund raising and community activities, advocating at the local, state and national level for public support of libraries, and developing an active and well-informed membership.” Yes, it’s long, but it expresses what the Friends organization is all about. Some examples of extending the library and literacy efforts: we have provided modest scholarships to students who are interested in library science at Castro Valley High School and Chabot College, students in San Jose State University’s master’s program in library sciences, as well as to the California Library Association’s Scholarship in Memory of Edna Yelland. We have also provided books to non-profit and other community organizations, such as Little Free Libraries, Eden Housing, Books for Prisoners, as well as to Castro Valley School District teachers.
Finally, did you know that our bookstore is open for more than 1,850 hours a year? We usually have 3 people volunteering in the store for all those hours, so that totals to over 5,550 volunteer hours per year! And that doesn’t count the additional hundreds of hours put in to support our three large annual book sales, weekly hauling of books to storage, online team listing and mailing of books, and other special projects. I am so impressed and thankful for the generosity of spirit and dedicated hours of our volunteers.