Across the district, 13 Friends of the Library groups meet regularly, channeling volunteer energy into funding, advocacy and hands-on support for their local branches. Each group knows its library best — so each works with their branch manager to tailor activities to what its community actually needs, whether that’s a book sale to fund summer reading programs, building awareness for new library services or projects, or simply making sure volunteers show up when it counts.

THAT LOCAL FOCUS IS POSSIBLE BECAUSE OF THE STRUCTURE BEHIND IT.

Each Friends group operates as part of the Foundation, under its nonprofit umbrella — so volunteers can focus on what they do best: running book sales, funding programs, and supporting their local library, without the burden of separately incorporating, filing federal and state paperwork, or managing complex financial reporting.

The Foundation handles that behind-the-scenes work — tax filings, financial reporting and compliance — as one organization. In return, Friends groups share their fiscal activity with the Foundation regularly, keeping everything transparent and audit-ready.