Happy Spring, Friends! By the time this newsletter reaches you, we will have had another one of our large book sales from April 10th to 12th . I hope you were able to visit us and get great deals on books, DVDs, CDs, audio books, puzzles, etc. We had over 400 boxes of items to sell, and all proceeds go back into library, literacy, and community programs.
We also just concluded the 9th annual Castro Valley Reads program, which was a great success. It was the first time I participated in from beginning to end. I got a lot out of reading the book, participating in a discussion group, and attending the finale with author Sally Tisdale. Death and dying can be difficult to learn and talk about, but it was heartening to see people grapple with their thoughts and feelings and engage in the discussion groups.
We had a very enjoyable experience several weeks ago when we reconvened the “Friendlies” group, which is comprised of Friends representatives from across the East Bay. Our Friends of the Castro Valley Library emeritus president Ned Lyke led this group from 2006 to 2020, but meetings were curtailed during the pandemic. Current circumstances supported re-starting the group, organized by our volunteers Kay Wetherwax and Claire Coelho. Friends groups attending spanned from Pleasant Hill to Albany to Livermore, and included Berkeley, Oakland, Hayward, and Dublin representatives. It’s fascinating to share information about our similarities and differences. Hosting future meetings will rotate between the participants, with the second meeting to be held in May at the Livermore library.
Last, we have been honored to participate in a project led by a Pleasanton fourth-grader named Matvii, who was born in Ukraine, to donate 10,000 children’s books to replenish damaged libraries in Ukraine. Many Friends groups and individuals contributed books (we provided 10 boxes) and the goal of 10,000 was met in late March. Now the project needs help with shipping costs. While I hope this worthy effort has been funded by the time you read this newsletter, if you want to help, search “Help Matvii Send Books to Children in Ukraine!” on GoFundMe.com.