Friends of the Library
Friends of The Marshalltown Public Library
Friends of Marshalltown Public Library contribute to the library by providing funding for new materials for the public to check out, funding programming for youth through adults, and running the Annual Book Sale. Anyone can become a Friend of the Library at any time during the year.
The Friends of Marshalltown Public Library is a not-for-profit, 501 (c)(3) corporation established in 1997. The mission of Friends is to support and promote the programs, resources, and services of Marshalltown Public Library. The Friends organization solicits gifts, endowments, and bequests for the benefit of the library. Become a friend by downloading and filling out the Membership Form. Send your membership information and donation to Friends of Marshalltown Public Library, 105 West Boone Street, Marshalltown, Iowa 50158. Membership forms and information are also available at the library. You can also donate to the Marshalltown Public Library via Paypal by clicking the link below.
Friends Board Officers
President: Jeff Hutton
Vice President: Ashley Johnson
Treasurer: Rebecca Rutishauser
Secretary: Nancy Steveson
Friends Board Members: Brandi Kerwood, Alyson Hicks, Jim Lowrance, Deb Oetker, Angie Pietig, Conny Schutte, Ann Heying, Cindy Vaughn, Janice Hubbard, and Laura McIntosh.
Annual Letter
October 30, 2020
Dear Friend of the Marshalltown Public Library,
This year has been an unprecedented time in our community. None of us could have predicted the effect that the pandemic would have on our lives. Although I don’t know what 2021 will bring, I do know this; there has never been a better time to renew your commitment to the Friends of the Marshalltown Public Library.
The Marshalltown Public Library has adapted services this year to ensure that everyone in our community has safe access to information, entertainment, and enrichment. Whether it’s providing curbside service, streamlining book checkout, or curating a vast selection of online resources for those who are at home, the library has proven, as it has time and time again, that it is an essential resource for our community.
Looking ahead, knowing that we are very unlikely to be able to safely have the large book sale, the youth department has added a full shelving range of youth books and have been offering one per child (including an honor system of taking a book for other children at home) to each family, every time they visit. The response to this has been overwhelmingly positive, during a time when many students have very limited access to books in other ways. We’ve seen an increase in families—who may have been visiting just to check out DVDs or use the computer–leave the library with books in their kids’ hands.
While we will not see revenue from the sale of these books, we know that giving away hundreds of books this way and has had an impact on a major literacy indicator—whether a child has books in his or her home. We’ve also added a free book table in the front of the library on many days that the weather permitted, and have included all kinds of books for all ages. We were able to do this, in part, because we know that Friends of the Library is a great supporter of not only the library, but of improving literacy and building a culture of reading in our community. We trusted that there would be Friends members who would not only appreciate these efforts, but sponsor these kinds of giveaways with their renewed memberships.
As a Friend of the Marshalltown Public Library, your gift helps to provide these services and more to our friends and neighbors. Now, more than ever, it is crucial that we support organizations that allow us to stay connected and informed.
I am enormously proud of our role in supporting the Marshalltown Public Library, because I know that it continues to have an incredibly positive impact on the lives of so many in our community. I hope you consider rejoining me in the Friends this year with your annual gift.
Jeff Hutton
President of the Friends of the Marshalltown Public Library
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Your support of our incredible library says so much about you. You clearly care about this community. You want people to have the resources to be empowered to learn and grow… no matter how much they have or where they come from.
We welcome donations no matter how small or large. We strive to make giving convenient and keep you abreast of new ways of giving. Joining or renewing your membership has never been so easy!
- Cash/Check donations are always welcome
- Online through Paypal
- NEW – Also available through Amazon.com is a community donation program. We want to make you aware of this program as online shopping increases. We encourage you to select Friends of the Marshalltown Iowa Public Library Inc to benefit from your Amazon shopping. The information below is edited from Amazon’s Smile “About” page: https://smile.amazon.com/