===PAGE 1=== Lunenburg Public LibraryTrustees of Lunenburg Public Library, Meeting Minutes March 20, 2025Attending: Harry Kubetz, Dick Mailloux, Donna Saiia (left 8:21 p.m.), Laura Boussom, Maia Wentrup, Jana-LeeBalish, David Niose, Muir HamanThe LPLBT meeting was called to order at 7:06 p.m. by Chairperson Harry Kubetz.Public Comment●No public comment.Agenda Items●Approval of Minutes of February 20, 2025○Dick made a motion to approve the minutes of February 20, 2025 as presented, seconded by Jana. Themotion passed unanimously.●Director’s Report○FY2025 Budget UpdateThe fiscal year is 67% completed.Still on track to be over-expended on water and sewer.The Mileage Reimbursement account includes expenses for training. At least three staff members will attendthe MLA Conference and the cost of that will be charged here. There will also be a charge here forHomelessTraining.com for staff. Harry asked about resources available for homeless patrons. Maia has infoabout shelters and other resources she can pass on to Muir. Donna suggested making a resource sheet tohave available to offer patrons. Staff can have this sheet available for those patrons who are receptive toreceiving help.○FY2026 Budget UpdateThe FY26 budget has increases in the water and sewer accounts to adjust for the increased cost of boththese expense categories. There is also an increase of $1K in the programs line item for next year.The postage line item has been removed for next year.The budget includes a 10% increase in staff salaries and 100 hours of floating time. It does not include thecurrently unfunded library assistant position.○Staff UpdateIn the past month, Muir has met with the CWMARS Users Council and participated in training for CensusData tools and the Public Records Law.Chief Thibodeau provided training for staff on de-escalation techniques. He also talked about opioidoverdose warning signs and building security measures. The library has Narcan donated by the police.Eight library staff members attended the Town Manager’s townwide staff luncheon on March 17. The librarywas closed for 90 minutes to allow staff the opportunity to attend.Bill Bernard, Director of DPW, has been working with Muir and Robin Venezia on a rainwater garden for thelibrary. Bill approached Muir about this a few months ago. It will be designed to catch rain and prevent runoff.A kiosk is planned to provide information so that people can try this at home. The funds to pay for thisgarden are in the DPW budget.Muir spoke with Susan Conroy about a memorial garden for Bob. She was appreciative and supportive of theidea.Muir has discussed a plan with Robin to plant native tree seedlings that will eventually replace the invasivepear trees currently planted on the grounds.Interviews for the open library page position were held on March 19.Monty Tech students have contacted Muir to offer volunteer labor. Muir will meet with them to discusspossibilities. ===PAGE 2=== Muir and Lydia will be meeting with a career center from Leominster and an immigrant rights group to see ifthere are ways to partner in support of the surrounding communities.Muir and Lydia have developed a staffing plan and are finalizing individual projects for each staff member.Muir, Lydia, and Melanie are finalizing an outreach plan. The plan will identify groups by their obstacle tolibrary use. The obstacles are transportation, disability, parents needing support, technological challenge,language, and being unaware of what the library offers.○Programs UpdateProgram attendance has been down the past two weeks, which is not unusual for this time of year. Even withthat, there are still programs that are pulling in a good number of attendees.○OutreachWe held a Libby Workshop at the Adult Activity Center for people interested in ebooks and e-audiobooks.We are working with the Friends to coordinate their attendance with the library staff at the Farmers andArtisan Markets.○Technology UpdateHalf of the security cameras are installed. The others are scheduled to be installed on March 21.○Building & Maintenance UpdateThe Teen Room renovation is complete and has been well received by the teens.Muir let us know that there is not enough capacity to handle the current EV charger design. Depending onthe disposition of the Brooks House, there may be possible solutions.○ARPA UpdateWe will be using a few thousand dollars of the contingency funds for the Teen Room.○Caucus / Nominees UpdateThe caucus nominees for Library Trustee are David Niose (current trustee), and Robin Venezia andStephanie Trudel.○Room Use / Tutors in the LibraryDefer until next month.●Weather Policy revision discussion and approval (Deferred from 2/20)○This was on the agenda in error. We voted on this last month.●Computer and Internet Use Policy revision discussion and approval (Deferred from 2/20)○Muir reviewed the policy with us. Maia made a motion to accept the policy as amended. Jana seconded. Themotion passed unanimously.●Library Invested Funds Update○Invested funds are at $101K.●Discussion about AI and its impact on libraries (Deferred from 2/20)○Jana brought to our attention an online article about Hoopla and the AI slop in its collection. There is no indicationto the users that an item is AI generated. When a patron checks out an item, the library is charged. This articlebrought a lot of nationwide attention to this issue which led to Hoopla saying they had removed most of the AIitems in their database. Muir said that libraries can not curate these for profit databases. You need to offer it all toyour patrons.○Muir made us aware of a lawsuit in California against Hoopla for tracking users.○Muir also made us aware that AI companies are requesting public records from municipalities to use that data totrain AI.○Harry asked if we should cancel Hoopla. Muir is going to do a cost/benefit analysis and get back to us. ===PAGE 3=== ●Brooks House Update / Discussion○No update.●Friends Update○Robin Venezia gave the Friends update. Planning for the library’s 20th anniversary celebration is under way.Plants have been ordered for the native plant sale.●Board Comments○Dick reminded us that the Trustees will need to appoint another member to the Master Plan Steering Committeeafter the election in May.●Other○None●Adjourn○A motion to adjourn was made by Dick, seconded by Jana. The motion passed unanimously. Meeting wasadjourned at 9:00 p.m.●Attached Documents○March 2025 Director’s Report○March 2025 Children’s Services Trustee Report○March 2025 Young Adult Services Report○March 2025 Adult Services Department Report ===PAGE 4=== LUNENBURG PUBLIC LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT FY25 Budget Update FY26 Budget Update Select Board had a meeting last night discussing the budget. Latest (from yesterday afternoon) from TM below: Staff Update FY25 Budget Budget Expended % Expended Calendar Completion LIBRARY DIRECTOR SALARY 90,726$ 64,307$ 71% 67% ASST LIBRARY DIRECTOR SALARY 64,023$ 44,697$ 70% LIBRARY STAFF SALARIES 242,984$ 175,379$ 72% BLDG REPAIRS & MTC -$ -$ SEWERAGE DISPOSAL 1,000$ 634$ 63% ELECTRICITY CHARGES 22,500$ 9,446$ 42% HEATING CHARGES/NATURAL GAS 18,500$ 7,630$ 41% WATER CHARGES 1,000$ 852$ 85% NETWORK MAINTENANCE 500$ 160$ 32% BOOK SERVICE 4,500$ 4,476$ 99% PROGRAMS 15,000$ 6,403$ 43% CONTRACTED SERVICES 2,500$ 732$ 29% CWMARS NETWORK 22,630$ 22,630$ 100% POSTAGE 900$ 295$ 33% OFFICE SUPPLIES 7,000$ 3,183$ 45% CUSTODIAL SUPPLIES 300$ 237$ 79% LIBRARY MATERIAL 94,000$ 31,292$ 33% MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENT 4,000$ 240$ 6% TOTALS 592,063$ 372,595$ 63% ===PAGE 5=== LUNENBURG PUBLIC LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT It seems like the last few weeks have been as busy as any for me. User’s Council, Security Camera installs, the finish of the Teen Room renovation, patrons visiting to chat about changes at the library. I participated in training sessions: Census Data, Public Records Law, and Chief Thibedeau of the Police Department visited our staff meeting this week to give us an informal training on de- escalation techniques. He also talked to us about opioid overdose warning signs, and building security procedures. I also met with the EV charging design firm to discuss their design and why it deviated from what we had hoped for. I’ve reached out to Deb Bookis of the schools to explore partnerships and I provided the schools feedback on their draft Collection Development Policy. The new Town Manager hosted a townwide staff luncheon March 17 and is definitely working on creating a healthier, friendlier atmosphere between departments. 8 library staff attended and we closed the library for 90 minutes. Bill Bernard of the DPW got a design for a rainwater garden to me last week. I shared it with Robin for her feedback. Bill and I discussed Tuesday morning, and he is supportive of the ideas we suggested. He will work with the design firm to incorporate what they can. I spoke with Susan Conroy briefly about the ideas for the memorial garden and gave her copies of our ideas. She seemed very surprised and appreciative, supportive of the ideas, but I want to connect again and confirm. Robin and I have chatted briefly about a tree stewarding program for the library grounds. We hope to germinate, plant and then steward a native tree for each of the invasive, decorative pears currently planted on the grounds. We are in the final steps of finding a replacement for our oldest Library Page, who has stepped away to concentrate on this studies and preparing for three AP tests this Spring. Interviews occurred yesterday. Monty tech students have reached out to offer volunteer labor. I will meet with them to discuss possibilities. Similarly, Lydia and I will meet with two community organizations—a career center and a support group for immigrants—to see if there are ways to partner in support of the surrounding communities. Lydia and I have developed our Staffing Plan and are finalizing individual projects for each staff member. These will be assigned in the next two weeks. Lydia, Melanie, and I are working on finalizing an Outreach Plan, identifying groups by their obstacle to library use. I will present this next month, and share it as soon as it is done. Programs Programming attendance seems to be taking a “vacation” the last two weeks. The weather is maybe too good, and we’ve seen a drop in numbers. Only a handful attended our St. Pat’s concert. Teen programs have seen numbers drop. Even story time attendance is down a bit. Recent highlights include the partnership with Lunenburg Business Association for a program on downsizing, Joslyn’s drop in craft session with almost 40 attendees, ===PAGE 6=== LUNENBURG PUBLIC LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT Kaitee’s TAB group, Music Clinic (19), Jill Pottle’s Drawing Class 0funded by the LCC (8 students), and Board Game Brunch (still only 6 attendees, but they LOVE it!). Coming up: Appraisal Workshop 3/22, Retirement Planning with Nikki of Edward Jones 3/24, Movie Night: Conclave 3/28, tomorrow night’s Teen Web Development Workshop, Gardening with Roin for Kids 3/22. Outreach Libby Workshop at LAAC on 3/19: we helped 4 individuals interested in ebooks and e-audiobooks. We are also working with the Friends to coordinate their attendance at Farmers and Artisan Markets, and events like the All Vendor Fair 5/10. Melanie, Lydia and I are finalizing our plan for next steps. Identifying target groups, services and how that will happen. Building & Maintenance Our new Teen Room looks spectacular. The teens seem very excited and have been enjoying the new furniture. Technology Half of the security cameras are installed. The other half are scheduled for tomorrow. We were also able to run 9 more cables to staff desks to get workstations off of wifi and back on LAN. ===PAGE 7=== MARCH 2025 Children's Services Trustee Report FEBRUARY STATS: ACTIVITY NUMBER / PARTICIPANTS LITTLE LISTENERS STORYTIME 3 105 PRESCHOOL STORY TIME 3 65 MAGIC TREE HOUSE BOOK CLUB KITS 1 12 KIDS COMIC CLUB KITS 1 12 DROP-IN CRAFT WITH MISS JOSLYN 1 39 LEGOS AT THE LIBRARY 1 11 HOMESCHOOLERS CRAFT- CRYSTAL CANDLE HOLDERS 1 21 FAMILY CRAFTERNOON 1 12 BATTLEBOTS- 2 SESSIONS 2 30 STEM KITS STATISTICS: Top 3 Kits: • Flowers and Unicorns Coding • Three Little Pigs Problem Solving • Building and Design 32 KITS 95 CIRCS: (11/24-1/25) MONTHLY BUDGET REPORT: https://tinyurl.com/4bhd9dpu PATRON QUOTE FOR FEBRUARY: “You have such a beautiful library! It’s so clean and well organized. I love all the many cool activities that you have- something for everyone!” ===PAGE 8=== HIGHLIGHTS FOR FEBRUARY: SENSORY STORY TIME WITH MISS PAM: Pam Wockenfuss presented Chicka Chicka Boom Boom sensory story time for an eager group of 11 children. She shared this wonderful story with the kids and their families and then allowed time to experience the story with all of their senses through the use of individual sensory boxes with a letter theme. Parents/caregivers are encouraged to participate along with the children as Pam explains the many benefits of sensory play. The added benefit- which the kids love- is that they get to keep their individual sensory bins! Battlebots with Mobile Quest: In this epic workshop participants used their coding skills to design a robot and take it tothe MobileQuest Arena where they then battled for robot supremacy. The participants worked in small teams to modify a Dash robot with balloons, skewers, plastic straws, and more as they prepared for battle to see who would have the last Bot standing?! Preparing for battle And they’re off! Making modifications for 2nd round Cookie Decorating with Miss Madeline: Miss Madeline stopped by to do another great cookie painting class with the kids. The kids had a blast bringing their delicious designs to life, exploring their artistic talents, and then enjoying a sweet treat they decorated themselves. It's a fun-filled, engaging activity that's topped off with a snack—what's not to like! Homeschoolers Craft Corner: ===PAGE 9=== This popular monthly activity was well attended again as the kids got a chance to interact with each other, be creative and go home with a cool candle holder! The homeschooling families are very appreciative of the time, space and activities that we provide for their group. So lovely! UPCOMING EVENTS FOR MARCH: • MARCH 1st - Magic Tree House Book Club and Kids Comic Club Kits available • MARCH 3-31st - Little Listeners Storytime for 0-3's • MARCH 5-26th - Preschool Story Time for 4’s & 5’s • MARCH 6th - In-Betweeners Book Club • MARCH 3rd – Homeschoolers Family Meet-Up • MARCH 8th – Sensory Story Time with Miss Pam • MARCH 10th – Drop-In Craft with Miss Joslyn • MARCH 13th- Autobiographical Graphic Novel Workshop with Jonathan Todd • MARCH 15th- S T E M with Chris • MARCH 24th - Homeschoolers Craft Corner • MARCH 20th- Art Class with Miss Julie • MARCH 22nd- Gardening with Robin • MARCH 24th - Homeschoolers Craft Corner • MARCH 25th - Legos at the Library • MARCH 29th- S T E M with Chris Debbie Laffond, Children’s Services Librarian Joslyn Davis, Library Assistant, Children’s Area ===PAGE 10=== Kaitlyn Himmelberger Young Adult Services March 2025 Summary - Programs o Past programs: ▪ Virtual Cooking, have currently 10 registered ▪ Video game night ▪ Homeschool Family meet up ▪ In-betweeners club ▪ TAB Meeting o Upcoming teen programs: ▪ Homeschool Craft Corner ▪ Intro to Web Development ▪ Sewing for Teens Other news/updates - Teen Room is open again! So far, all the teens and community members like the new space. - Signed up for a Youth Services professional development Youth Engagement workshop in May. - Garden program this year is “Hot Ones” themed. Will be doing garden take and make kits in April and starting the plants inside soon. ===PAGE 11=== Trustee Report Adult Services Department March 2025 Summary of Last Month’s Programs & Events ➢ February’s music clinic and performance workshop with Jason Graham had 18 people attend. ➢ Board Game Brunch had 6 players on Saturday February 8th. ➢ Our Winter Puzzle Swap on Saturday February 15th saw 72 people come in to get new to them puzzles from the 650+ selections on display. Our most popular puzzle swap of the year! ➢ The winter session of Niki Holtzman’s weight strengthening series started on February 18th and will run for 5 weeks on Tuesday mornings. We have averaged 12 people at sessions, as of March 11th. ➢ We hosted a puzzle race for 8 teams competing to complete their puzzle first on the evening of February 19th. There were 34 people of all ages, even a team of 3 young boys, participating in the event, with a waitlist of 3 additional teams who wanted to participate. ➢ The rescheduled Winter Sowing Program was held on the evening of February 20th. As always, there was a strong showing of people coming to make a winter sowing project with 28 people at this year’s program. Robin Venezia proved indispensable in her assistance making this a success again, and working with her is always a pleasure! ➢ This month’s Sew Simple session had 5 people on February 25th, but those who came made significant progress on their projects and appreciated the help and opportunity to work as a group. ➢ The visible mending workshop we were looking forward to hosting was well attended with positive feedback from participants. We have a second one booked on April 18th to accommodate those who were waitlisted or missed the event in February. This Month’s Programs & Events ➢ The March Saturday morning music clinic with Jason Graham was on March 1st with 19 people. ➢ Following the music clinic on March 1st was a reception for the new art exhibit with Trish Brown. We had two people join us for that event. ➢ Creative Drawing Basics was taught by Jill Pottle on Sunday March 2nd. There were 8 students in her session. This was funded by an LCC grant. ➢ The Lunenburg Business Association partnered with the library to host a downsizing seminar in the Wallace Room on Thursday, March 13th. There were 12 people in attendance. ➢ The March session of craft & chill, booked for Friday, March 14th, was canceled again due to low registrations. We may pause these programs until next fall/winter, when it was more popular. ➢ Board Game Brunch took place on Saturday March 15th with 5 players at the library. ➢ We were very excited to bring back The Gloucester Hornpipe and Clog Society for a St. Patrick’s Day concert on Sunday, March 16th. Unfortunately, a mix of weather and timing most likely led to an unexpectedly low turnout for the amazing concert. There were 5 people in attendance. ➢ Our community read book discussion brunch with the Lunenburg Adult Activity Center had 16 participants on the morning of March 17th. ➢ An appraisal workshop will be held on Saturday, March 22nd. ➢ Edward Jones Financial will visit the library on March 24th to discuss retirement planning. ➢ The next Sew Simple session will be held on March 25th. ➢ There will be a movie night on Friday, March 28th, with a screening of Conclave that evening. ➢ Jill Pottle will teach a second LCC grant funded session of Creative Drawing Basics on Sunday, March 31st. ===PAGE 12=== Recurring Program Update ➢ Book clubs are going well with attendance continuing to grow in all but the Baking Book Club. o The Baking Book Club, which meets every first Wednesday, will have its last meeting in April. Due to continued low engagement we will be discontinuing this experimental book club. We may do quarterly recipe swap socials or another type of food-based program, but that is to be determined. o The 100 Books Bucket List book club meets every first Tuesday morning. We averaged 9 attendees at each meeting last year, and we continue to get new members each month. o The Brighter Days book club meets every second Wednesday evening. There are now 10 consistent members of that discussion group. ➢ Stitchcraft knitting and crochet group attendance has bloomed in recent months with some weekly meetings having nearly a dozen crafters! There are consistently at least 4-5 people here every Tuesday, but most weeks we will have 6-7 people with us for the drop-in program. Quite a hit! Virtual Program Update ➢ These are all events sponsored and managed by other libraries. By partnering with them we receive a dedicated link to track viewership and engagement from our patrons. To further promote these events, there is a standalone brochure at the front desk advertising March and April virtual programs. o “Author Afarin Bellisario discusses "Silenced Whispers"” took place on March 8th. Viewers TBD. o “Freedom to Read Event: Zoom Interview with Amanda Jones, author of That Librarian” took place on March 16th. We had 0 viewers. o “Irish Whiskey - History and Recs with Travis Ireland of The Friskey Whiskey Podcast” will be on March 17th. o “Community Read: Author Talk with Sonia Purnell!” will be on March 25th. o “A History of Guinness Beer with Brewery Ambassador, Mike Reardon” will be on March 31st. Programming Financial Report ADULT PROGRAMS AS OF 3/17/2025 BUDGET LINE TOTAL % SPENT % ENCUMBERED % REMAINING TOWN $4,500 74% 15% 11% FRIENDS - PROGRAM $3,000 57% 27% 16% FRIENDS - SUPPLIES $500 74% 0% 26% MUSIC SERIES $6,600 62% 21% 17% GRAND TOTAL $14,600 67% 16% 17% Respectfully submitted, Lydia Paolilli