St. Mary's County Library

Thank you  

for another great year!

2010 Highlights

Library Board members

Dear Library Customer,

 

           On behalf of the Library Board and staff, I am pleased to present the library's 2010 annual report.  This year we are "going green" by distributing the report electronically and printing just a few copies to post in the branches.
 

            It is obvious that our county residents have made their public library system an essential part of their lives.  For 2010 we had 75,394 registered borrowers, an annual increase of 5%; 675,000 annual visits, a 6% increase; and 1,435,700 items checked out, an 11% increase.

 

          It is equally obvious that we have a very efficient and very busy staff.  The business levels of our branches have increased significantly over the past several years; however, due to the hard work of your staff and continued technology enhancements we have not had to increase staffing levels.  Your Library Board and staff continue to give high priority to increased funding for materials to be checked out and for technology resources.

 

         I want to take this opportunity to thank the elected officials who continue to support their county library system, our very active Friends of the Library Board members, and the many local residents who made donations to purchase more materials or for special projects such as the Lindsey Paul Rudolph Fund.

 

          Finally, and most importantly, THANKS to you, our valued library customers.  It is you who make the library your community hub!

 

Alan E. Dillingham, President

St. Mary's County Board of Library Trustees


 

Pictured above are Board Members (seated left to right) Vice President Joan Springer, President Alan Dillingham, Treasurer Carole Romary; (Standing left to right) Lynn Newkirk, Everlyn Holland, Carolyn Guy and Dan Burris. 

Improved Services

girl using whisper tube
* Active Learning Centers installed at Lexington Park & Charlotte Hall provide FUN learning experiences for preschoolers and their families.


 

* Blu-ray collection was introduced.


 

* New programs packed the meeting rooms: Mark Twain; our own Captain Jack Russell; introduction to e-government resources; and amazing LEGOs creations.

Jack Russell with kids kissing fish

 

* More PCs were added and old ones replaced.
 

* More downloadable titles are available for your e-readers and audio devices.

 

Partners

*  Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) approved a Memorandum of Understanding between the Library Board and the BOCC which formalizes a set of agreements between the county and the library; thus, allowing the Library Board to spend more money on books and less money on staff!

 

*  Lexington Park Library was designated a Cooperating Collection site by the Foundation Center.  Library staff can now provide access to proprietary databases and conduct grant writing workshops for nonprofits and individuals.

 

* Mechanicsville Optimists donated funds to start the library's wildly successful LEGOs program.

father and son enjoying LEGOs


Donations
Susan Paul


 

The Lindsey Paul Rudolph Fund was created through the generous donation of Laraine & Bill Glidden and the many friends of Lindsey & Todd  Rudolph and Lindsey's parents, Susan & Bob Paul.  The fund allows us to hire a Summer Intern to work in the Children's Departments of our libraries.  The first Intern was hired in Summer 2010.


 

Friends of the Library logoThe Friends of the Library (FOL) Annual Book Sale was held at the County Fairgrounds and raised a record breaking $22,000!  The FOL held a mini-book sale at Leonardtown Library in November and raised an additional $4,000.


 

*  We received another State Capital Grant for the design of the New Leonardtown Library.  Thus far, we have received $887,000 in state grants for this project.  The architectural firm should be hired in early 2011.  Click here for the Fact Sheet
 


 Communications


* Customer survey revealed that you love your library staff BUT... you want more books and DVDs, longer hours, and less noise!  We will continue to work to meet these requests .  Click here for a summary of the survey results.


 

* We're on Facebook Face Bookand have more than 670 fans.  Are you one?  
 


Busiest Year Ever!
 

Items checked out               1,435,701      +11%

     We are #4 in the state in number of items checked out per resident!   

Visitors                                    674,584       + 6%

Cardholders                               75,394       + 5%

Computer Uses                        158,204       +15%

Volunteer Hours                          6,778       +12%


 

        Income                                               Expenses

County        $2,281,038                         Staff              75%

State                623,940                         Technology     5%

Fines/Fees      250,000                         Materials       15%

Total           $3,154,978                         Other             10%

Our Libraries

Charlotte Hall Library, 37600 New Market Rd, Charlotte Hall     301-884-2211

 

Leonardtown Library, 23250 Hollywood Rd, Leonardtown          301-475-2846


 Lexington Park Library, 21677 FDR Blvd, Lexington Park           301-863-8188


Director Kathleen Reif,

301-475-2846 x1013

 

January 2011