As the song says, it is indeed the most wonderful time of the year. And as we celebrate it, each in our own individual way, we are filled with gratitude for all of the amazing gifts that 2022 has brought to the Santa Cruz Public Libraries and to the Friends.
We started the year with a wonderful new Director, Yolande Wilburn, who has proven to be everything that we hoped for and more. Working with Assistant Director Eric Howard, she has laid out a clear vision of where the system is going over the next few years. They will be sharing the final version with all of you over the next few weeks.
We have seen new or renovated branches open in Garfield Park, Boulder Creek, Scotts Valley, and Live Oak. Branciforte and Aptos will open in the coming year. And, now that the people of the City of Santa Cruz have had their say, we are moving forward on the new Downtown Library, which will be the hub of the entire system.
As we have moved through all of this, as well as the remaining effects of the pandemic, you have been with us all the way. Believe me when I say that we feel your support each and every day of the year, and particularly now. Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart. Your support means everything to us and has had a huge impact on the system, particularly, on the kind of libraries that we are bringing online, which represent all that is best about this amazing and magical town that we all share.
So, our thanks go out to you. And we wish you the best of the holiday season. Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, Ramadan, Kwanzaa, Yule, the Solstice, Festivus, or just the slow return of the sun, we hope you have a wonderful time, and offer you our thanks and gratitude for your support.
One final reminder, a fantastic Santa Cruz tradition is SC Gives, where all of us can go to a single website to make an end-of-year gift to any of the many transformative non-profits that are active in Santa Cruz county. If you’d like to give us a gift the link is
santacruzgives.org/nonprofit/fscpl and we thank you. I’d like to recommend though that you take a look at all the many groups out there that can use your help. The main link is
santacruzgives.org and all of them would be glad to hear from you.
Thanks again for being part of this crazy, wonderful, and generous community. I look forward to hearing from you and seeing you next year.