In 2008, a group of residents with the same vision met to discuss the possibility of creating a library/museum in Alba. On Saturday, March 5, 2011, the thousands of hours of volunteer blood, sweat, and tears finally came together as the library hosted its Grand Opening. The event took place at the Alba Library and Museum’s permanent home at 109 E. Holley St. in Alba.
“It’s been quite a ride,” said past president Carey Carpenter. “We started with a donated building that had leakage problems, scraped together mismatched shelves donated from already established libraries that no longer needed them, and received thousands of books from local residents and remnants from other libraries’ book sales.”
Saundra Burge had a vision of collecting local historical artifacts to preserve the city’s rich heritage. “Many local residents had items from previous generations that they wanted to preserve. They were happy to donate or loan them so thousands could enjoy them.”
The same core group of volunteers tirelessly worked to fix, clean, and set up a library for the community to use. Computers were donated for public internet use, a computerized library cataloging system was installed, and thousands of books were inventoried, labeled, and filed. The Alba Economic Development Corporation and the City of Alba were in complete support of the endeavor and offered financial assistance as the budget would allow. Fundraisers were held, the wild hog cook-offs sponsored, and the group continued a community presence in all local events. The library was on target to open in 2010 when an unexpected gift was awarded. The board had applied for a $50,000 grant from the Tocker Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to encouraging rural libraries. Librarian Cheryl Gill called the Tocker Foundation to find out when the grants would be rewarded, and Mr. Tocker himself happened to answer the phone. “I was so surprised that Mr. Tocker was on the other end of the phone call, and even more surprised when he told me that the Alba Library and Museum had been awarded the full $50,000 we had requested to buy matching shelves and furniture. The grant wasn’t funded until 2011. Among other items, we included some really cute children-sized durable furniture to include in our highly popular children’s section.”
While waiting for the delivery, the volunteers continued the painstakingly slow process of entering each book into the cataloging system and then packing them back into boxes while awaiting the shelves. Once they arrived, the library floor-plan was rearranged, and all books were unpacked and shelved. Originally half of the front was designated for the museum, but due to the need for more shelving space and the need for a more antique artifact friendly lighting, the museum area was relocated to a back section of the library. Up until the Grand Opening the library had been staffed with volunteers to be opened on a limited basis. “Now, with our new facelift, so many of the books shelved, and our wonderful furniture in place, we’re ready to show it off and invite the public to come in and enjoy it,” says Librarian Cheryl Gill. The library is doing well and is still staffed strictly with volunteers. We would love to have more volunteers, so let us know if you are interested.
~ Adapted from an article written by Carey Carpenter.
