By Anne Gibson
Members of the Friends of the Esmond Station Library were up early and ready for an adventure as they drove down west to Sahuarita to attend a Pima County Public Library Advisory Board Retreat on Saturday, May 7th.
Friends’ members came from Oro Valley to Green Valley, from Arivaca to Vail, and from all parts of Pima County. The annual retreat had been canceled last year due to the pandemic so there was much to celebrate. Many Friends were seeing Sahuarita’s new regional library for the first time.
After a continental breakfast, Pima County Library Director, Amber Mathewson, and Library Advisory Board Chair, John Halliday, welcomed newly appointed Pima County Administrator, Jan Lesher, who spoke to the role of libraries during the pandemic.
All libraries were closed for two months to protect clientele and staff. When reopened, they provided curb service and continue to do so, and provided 200,000 food and snacks for their community members. Of the 27 libraries, 10 librarians resigned, causing a staffing shortage that continues today. “We are hiring and rebuilding our services trying to get back to pre-pandemic times,” said County Administrator Lesher.
“Recently I spent a rewarding day at the beautiful new library in Sahuarita. This was a retreat designed to present the mission of our Pima County public libraries to the various “Friends” groups and the foundation that help to support the libraries. I feel I must have been living in a bubble all these years. I have always been an avid reader, but until this retreat, I never full understood the breadth of services provided by the library system, and the tools that are available to the library user. I am impressed by the work that the library staff does for our community, and their plans to provide even more services to support the constantly-changing face of our population,” said Esmond Station Friends Board Member Dave Stitt.
Deputy Director Karen Prechtel-Altman spoke about the Freedom and Library Collections, as expressed in The Library Bill of Rights, which includes a Freedom to Read statement.
“I have loved libraries my whole life for all the traditional reasons. At yesterday’s retreat I learned about that the dedicated passionate staff are concerned about far more than books. They are actively pursuing and defending the rights of people to visit and work in an institute that protects their first Amendment rights of freedom of speech, prevents book banning, cares about diversity in the books and staff, represents access for all, internet access for all, and strives to care for the needs of everyone in the community (especially as demonstrated during the Covid19 crisis). They care about mental health especially in teens and victims of trauma, and educate their staff about ways to resolve conflicts without suspending library privileges, and so much more! Libraries are not just buildings with books and computers. Libraries are a living evolving defender and protector of our society, our rights, and our people (especially the most vulnerable). They are essential and worth praising, funding, and protecting,” said Kristina Kanuer, secretary of the Friends of the Esmond Station Library.
“If you have not yet visited our new “W. Anne Gibson Esmond Station Library, please stop in and take a look – take a book, too. I think you’ll like it. Even better I ask that you join our “Friends of the Esmond Station Library at http://wageslibraryfriends.org,” said Dave Stitt.
Whittley “Anne” Gibson is a third generation Tucsonan and alumni of the University of Arizona. She has been an active community member in the greater Vail area since the late 1970s.
