Carolyn Fisher has supported Sedona Public Library for more than two decades, and it's no surprise as her love of libraries goes way back. "My mother took me to the library before I could even walk; it was always part of our lives," Carolyn said. Her passion for all things literary and literacy have led not only to supporting the Library but also to volunteering as a reading tutor. Carolyn is the director of the Sedona Literacy Center, a grass roots project to aid second and third graders in reading and writing. Her motto is, "If you can read, you can succeed."

Carolyn loves to be a part of broadening horizons and thus is thrilled with the news that in November, Sedona Public Library will open a branch library in Big Park Community School. "This is a dream come true, and I will do everything I can to help make this grow." Carolyn backed up this promise with a gift and a pledge to keep giving. Having someone like Carolyn in our midst makes our work even more rewarding. Thank you, Carolyn!

In early November our current Service Center in Bell Rock Plaza will move to the Big Park Community School and become Sedona Public Library in the Village, a full branch library! We will quadruple our space and build a collection. There will be space for materials, meetings, study, computer use, and reading, as well as library programs. This is a long-awaited expansion and a dream come true for so many Big Park/Village of Oak Creek residents. To support the expansion, visit our website, and direct your gift to SPLV: sedonalibrary.org/donate.

At the main library in West Sedona, we will soon break ground on a new 18,500 square-foot Library Courtyard. This beautiful addition will offer safe, accessible space with great WiFi, where you can hang out, meet with friends, read, study, star gaze, attend library programs, and more! Want to show your support? You will have the opportunity to put your name on pavers. Thinking bigger? You can underwrite programs or sponsor specific areas of the Courtyard. Stay tuned for more information on naming opportunitites.

We often receive questions about whether a donor can direct a planned gift to us, like a Required Minimum Distribution, or leave us in their will. "Are you a nonprofit?" people ask. The answer is a resounding YES!

While it's not a common model for a library, Sedona Public Library is, indeed, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization having received our designation in 1964. Most libraries--about 90 percent of them--are a department of a municipality like a county or a city. Many belong to a college or university. But we are independent and private, organized to serve as a public library, and we have done so for over 60 years.

While the City of Sedona and both Yavapai and Coconino Counties have no oversite, they provide funding for Sedona Public Library. Their support, along with that from the Friends of the Sedona Library and people like you, is vital to our ability to provide services and programs. Our EIN is 86-6052627, and if you have more questions, please reach out to Anne Marie (See below.)

Please watch for the Fall 2021 special edition of our biannual magazine Check It Out. This issue is dedicated to our Community Needs Assessment. You'll find an infographic in your mailbox soon, and then the full report will be available online and at the Library, telling you all about this important project and how it evolved and led to many of the changes you're seeing.

If you would like to support the work that we do, we'd appreciate your gift! Please visit sedonalibrary.org/donate. Or give me a call, I'm happy to talk about the many ways you can make a gift to your public, non-profit library.

Whether you'd like to make a recurring monthly gift, provide a matching gift for one of our campaigns, include us in your will or trust, add us as a beneficiary to your insurance policy, or direct your Required Minimum Distribution our way, your support is needed. Please reach out, I'd love to chat. amackler@sedonalibrary.org.