Four new members joined the vibrant Castlegar and District Library board, and two members departed after completing their service to the board and all of its books and services.
March 13 was a pleasant AGM, what with the turn to good weather and influx of people wanting to be on the board. Leaving the board were chair Katrina Vermette and member Gord Turner, both having completed eight years of exemplary service.
Board members partway through their terms are Jill Seaborn, Denise Maier (Area J), Camille Roberts (Area H) and Shannon McCready. Other members re-elected and serving a second term include Jerry Vandenbilche and Jayme Jones.
These stalwart board members have been joined by Jesse Ellis, Terry Gerling, Mike Phipps, and Sheemahu Goodenough who have been elected to their first term overseeing the library, its budget, its programs, and its numerous services. City of Castlegar representative to the board is councillor Cherryl MacLeod.
Head librarian Kimberly Partanen reminded the AGM audience that the library is a place where many events for the community, for children, and for seniors take place. She said the library motto Minds Grow Here is so true because the library is a space where it’s possible “to teach, learn, and get connected.”
Among the statistics in the written AGM report were 360 programs, 87,699 in-person library visits, 15,990 public computer sessions, 18,440 online resources accessed, 116,937 items circulated, 10,457 library memberships noted, 571 new library members, and 2,372 reference questions dealt with.
Outgoing chair Katrina Vermette thanked everyone who helped the library in any way during the year, paying particular attention to the excellent staff and the friendly volunteers. She concluded by saying that “you make our library so vibrant and popular.”