MBA APRIL MEETING
Press Release:
April 17, 2008
On Thursday, April 17, 2008, the Marlborough
Business Association held its first morning
meeting of 2008. The meeting was held at the
Richmond Public Library, and was attended by
over 15 members, guests and staff. The featured
guest speaker was Nancy Wood, MLS, Director of
the Library.
MBA President Donna Finocchiaro of The
Organized Lifestyle thanked Ms. Wood for hosting
the group. She also introduced the guests that
were present, and the members that attended were
able to give a brief introduction of themselves,
and their company. Donna then introduced Ms.
Nancy Wood, Director of the Library, as our
featured guest speaker.
Ms. Wood holds a Master of Library Science,
and spoke to the group on all the resources
available at the public library. Ms. Wood began
by noting the library has grown significantly on
two different fronts, collection size and use of
materials. “Running a library is like running a
business”, she stated. With 75% of their
funding coming from a grant from the Town of
Marlborough, the library has become a private
association. They run usage reports daily, and
annually, all the information goes to the State
and Federal governments to track various items,
patterns and procedures.
In 2007, Ms. Wood proudly
stated that there were over 71,200 visitors to
the Richmond Memorial Public Library. There
were over 131,064 items that were borrowed from
the library’s collection; the highest borrow
level in all of greater Hartford. The Richmond
Memorial Library has been ranked one of the best
libraries in the country. Thomas Hennen's 2005
HAPLR index of libraries has named Richmond
Memorial Public Library number 7 of the 10
libraries named nationwide in the 5,000 to 9,999
population category.
With the advancement in technology a lot has
changed at your local public library. With the
automated circulation system now in place,
simply checking out a book or renewing materials
has become easier, a fact that Ms. Wood says
adds to customer service. Not only do you get
an email reminding you to renew your item, now
you can call or stop by the library to renew,
the choice is yours. The library now hosts two
blogs as well, a Library Blog, and a Teens
Blog. Other successes of the library include
downloadable audio books, a wireless network,
and computer usage. You can still find such
programs as story time and book clubs, but you
can also find a computer concierge service that
offers one on one help to anyone struggling with
computers.
Ms. Wood also touched on the fact that the
library is a “welcome wagon” to prospective
residents of Marlborough. The library is open
on Saturdays when most other town offices are
closed, and it is the duty of the library staff
to meet and greet patrons warmly. Ms. Wood
takes pride in the library and the work she and
the staff have been able to accomplish. The
library is now in the planning stages for
2008-2009, and she promises that more is to
come! Right now, she is focused on getting the
word out for their upcoming Book Sale taking
place on Saturday, June 7. Please visit the
Richmond Public Library website at
http://www.richmondmemoriallib.org
for more information.
