Join the Committee

If you look down the left margin of this blog, between the "Blog Archive" and "About Me," there is a list of the current members of the Building Expansion Fundraising Committee, nicknamed "FREB" (for Fund Raising for Expansion of Building) because it is hard to pronounce "BEFC."  At this time FREB has been in existence for over two years.  Prior to the establishment of FREB by the then-president of the Trustees, Maryelen Brown, the Library had, and still has, a Building Expansion Committee, which over a period of seven years established with studies the need for a larger library building, determined that it was best for the Library and the community to expand the Manse rather than to move to a different location or to tear down the Manse and build anew in the present location, visited many local libraries to observe how they handled expansion or new buildings, interviewed a number of architects and hired Donald Mac Donald, worked with Donald to create an overall plan for expansion, obtained a grant to pay for a study of whether or not Pleasant Valley could financially support expansion (it can according to the study), and tried and failed to attract a large grant that would pay for a significant amount of the cost of construction.  That Building Committee, now headed by Trustee Ardith Orr, had and has many concerns.  It was apparent that the Library also needed a group that specifically was concerned with fundraising. 

Although the original Building Expansion Fundraising Committee consisted of several Trustees, from the beginning we planned for broader community representation.  Several people showed interest in joining.  Today, Karen Minturn (a former Library volunteer), Elma Carlson (who first suggested that the Presbyterian Manse be converted into a library building), and Suzanne Horn (the county legislator for Pleasant Valley and another former volunteer) are among the most active members of the committee.  Maryelen appointed me head of the committee, and I asked the Friends of the Pleasant Valley Library if they could send a representative.  Joe Lukaitis, as the Friends' representative, is another of the most active committee members today. Of course, we still have several of the Board of Trustees who work for the committee as well.

The committee set up accounts with the Community Foundation of Dutchess County to manage its funds and to provide the option of online fundraising.  It has contacted Foundations about grants.  It has raised money with direct mail (and will do more of that). It has worked with the Library to aid in repair and improvement of the Manse, which is still ongoing. It has begun a series of tours of the Library intended to acquaint local citizens with the problems and potential of the current building and with expansion plans.  It is planning fundraising events.

Although the list of committee members on this blog appears long, not everyone who participates is available all the time.  We would love to have new members.  If you are interested in joining FREB, then email me at bryanhbunch@gmail.com.  Our next meeting is Monday, April 6, at 7:00 pm at the Library.  Hope to see you there.