April 2015 - Friends of the Alameda Free Library

Volume 40 Number 4
April 2015
Kris Matarrese, Editor
City of Alameda’s Library Board….
will have two opening at the end of June. The Board is in need of representatives from the following sectors:
 Bay Farm Island Library patrons
 West End Library patrons
 Senior citizens
More information about the Library Board is available at: http://alamedaca.gov/city-hall/library-board
Dewey’s Café…
is located in the Main Library and needs volunteers for the following shifts:
 Monday afternoons
 Every other Wednesday morning
 Every other Wednesday afternoon
Shifts are 3.5 hours. Two volunteers scheduled for each shift. Please email or call Kris Matarrese:
krismatarrese@gmail.com or call 510-205-5816
Next Friends Meeting: April 20th at 7:00pm.
Main Library 1550 Oak Street Alameda Stafford Conference Room A
Mission: To increase public awareness of the library as an essential part of the community’s educational and cultural
facilities. To support and cooperate with the library in developing library services and facilities.
The Anthemion is published by The Friends of the Alameda Free Library P.O. Box 1024, Alameda CA 94501
www.friendsalamedafreelibrary.org
Combined Friends of the Library and
Alameda Foundation Meeting
March 16, 2015
ALF began the meeting. The following are the
minutes of the FOL portion of the meeting.
The Minutes of the meeting of Feb 23, 2015 were
approved.
Treasurer’s Report by Bill Gibbs - We are solvent
and have received $208.00 in donations, and
$345.00 from the cafe this month. Our
investments have yielded $7,000.00 in an up and
down market.
Membership report by Jerry Yarbrough - We
have 172 members at present.
Book Sale report by Adair Jorgensen and Gert
Woods. The next sale is scheduled for May 1- 3,
2015 in the O Club at Alameda Point. No space
has yet been found for book storage but we have a
prospective basement to be checked out.
Cafe Report by Kris Matarrese - More volunteers
have been trained and everything is going
smoothly. Profits of $345.00 have been given to
the treasurer.
Library Board report by Jane Chisaki - An Art
Donation policy has been approved and a possible
donation of a Plankton Poetry exhibit from the
Exploratorium has been offered. She will go and
see it.
Library Director, Jane Chisaki, will present her
budget to the city council on April 16. among
other requests are some funds to provide each
library site with broadband faster WiFi service. (1
Gb/s) We have received a State Library grant to
cover 75% of the cost. We also need to
repair/replace audio/visual equipment in the
Stafford room.
New business - We approved the budget for 2015
and the expenditure of up to $300.00 for the
Library Week (April 12-19) lunch for staff.
Next meeting is April 20, 1015
Jo Winzenread, Secretary
Submitted by Jo Winzenread, Secretary
Friends of the Alameda Free Library Book Sale
May 1st-3rd
Volunteers Needed
The twice a year Book Sales are the biggest fund
raisers the Friends of the Library (FOL) have to
support the Library and its many programs.
Without volunteers the Book Sale will not happen.
Due to insurance requirements, all volunteers must
be members of the FOL. An application form is on
the back of this newsletter and may be brought to
the Book Sale.
Friday morning May 1st - 10am till we finish!
We need to load every table with lots and lots
books! Once that is complete, volunteers are
welcomed to shop though a two (2) box limit is
strictly enforced.
Friday night May 1st - 6:30pm to 9pm: The
Preview Sale needs
 Book Sitters

Table Watchers

Pre-Counters

Cashiers

Hand Truck Drivers
Saturday May 2nd - 9am to 4:30pm: This is the
busiest of the three days! We again need
volunteers in two hour shifts for the same tasks as
the Preview Sale the night before (see above).
Sunday May 3rd - Noon to 4pm: Box & Bag Sale
Day. Just as on Saturday, two hour shifts needed
for all the tasks listed above.
Sunday May 3rd - 4pm till we finish! Pack ‘em
Up and Move ‘em Out! Box up any remaining
books, put the table away and clean up. Lots of
high energy volunteers needed here!
Please contact Adair 510-865-0347 or
robertjorgensen110@att.net and sign up for your
volunteer time. Only you can make this
happen! Thank you!
AFL Friends and Foundation Ad Hoc Merge Committee
Wednesday, February 11, 2015, 5:30 pm
Summary of the Meeting Minutes
The meeting was called to order. Introductions were made around the table. The topic of this meeting
was programs. Representatives from both the FOL and the Foundation were in attendance to discuss
the current programs of each organization. Below is a summary of the discussion.
Take-aways include:
 Common goal of raising money for the library
 Programs profitability
 Large number of volunteer hours expended
 No overlap or duplication in programs between the two organizations
 No obvious obstacle to a merger was discovered.
Program
FOL’s Café Program
Goals
To raise money for the library
FOL’s Book Sale
To raise money for the library
AFLF’s Live @ the
Library Concerts
To raise money for the library, to offer
a high quality music venue in
Alameda, and entice people into the
library that may not otherwise use the
library thereby increasing the head
count for library events
AFLF’s fundraising
events
To raise money for the library
Challenges
Maintaining an adequate
number of volunteers,
contending with the elderly
demographic of the current
volunteer pool and ensuring
succession planning
Sorting books in a cramped
space, receiving donations that
are too trashed to be sold,
paying the high cost of
advertising in the newspapers,
and ensuring succession
planning
Securing concert sponsorships
Tapping into the planned giving
process with donors which is
highly labor intensive and
requires specialized skill
Nonprofit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Alameda,
Permit No. 75
P.O. Box 1024
Alameda, CA 94501
Return Service Requested
(Please check one)
New membership
or
Renewal
Name
Address
City/State/Zip
Phone
Email
Check preferred format: email
(this choice leaves more money for library programs!) or US Mail
Please check desired category
*
Please check area of interest
Student (K-12)
$10.00
2
Book Sales (May/October)
Senior (65+)
$10.00
2
Book Sorting (Mondays)
Individual
$15.00
2
Library Café
Family (What a deal!)
$25.00
2
Friends’ Board of Directors
Donor (Thank you!)
$35.00
4
Friends’ Newsletter
Patron (Impressive!)
$50.00
4
Friends’ Membership Drives
Sponsor (Wonderful!)
$75.00
4
Friends’ Special Events
$100.00
4
Other (Specify)
Benefactor (Awesome!)
Please consider adding an additional amount as a
tax deductible donation.
$
Total Amount Enclosed:
$
*Indicates the number of Preview tickets you will receive for each of the two annual book sales, a great deal since
Preview tickets are $5 each for non-members! Annual memberships are from January 1st to December 31st. Dues
received after September 1st are applied to the following year. Please make checks payable to “Friends of the Alameda
Free Library.” Here are two ways to get your check and form to the Friends of the Library:

Drop off at the Front Desk of the Main Library

Mail to us at: Friends of the Alameda Free Library P.O. Box 1024 Alameda, CA 94501