===PAGE 1=== Lunenburg Public Library Trustees of Lunenburg Public Library, Meeting Minutes April 17, 2025 Attending: Harry Kubetz, Laura Boussom, Maia Wentrup (remote), Jana-Lee Balish, David Niose, Muir Haman, Micheal-Ray Jeffreys (remote) The LPLBT meeting was called to order at 6:51 p.m. by Chairperson Harry Kubetz. Discussion about the redevelopment of Brooks House ● Michael-Ray Jeffreys gave a summary of the status of the Brooks House. ○ An article submitted by the Architectural Preservation District Committee passed at the 2024 Special Town Meeting directing the Select Board to come up with a plan for the sale or lease of the Brooks House. ○ Per the Municipal Building Design Committee, the Brooks House is surplus property and has no municipal use. ○ Town records show that the 20 parking spots behind the Brooks House were designated for use by the Brooks House. ○ The article passed at Town Meeting advised that the plan include an easement to use up to eight additional parking spaces at the library. ○ The only access to the Brooks House is through the library parking lot. Town records show that it was decided that no access should be available from the school driveway, and there is no place for access from Mass Ave. ● Michael-Ray left the meeting and the trustees continued to discuss the pros and cons of the sale or lease of the Brooks House. There were concerns about losing access to the 20 parking spots behind the Brooks House, and having to share any parking spots with a future business located there. The library parking lot is frequently full as it is now. There were also concerns about safety with the potential increase in traffic, especially during the after school hours when there is a lot of foot traffic with students walking through the library property. ● Muir shared a statement from Tony Sculimbrene, Chair of the APDC, in which he stated support for the restoration of the Brooks House. ● Muir and the Trustees need to be included in the decision-making process for the disposition of the Brooks House. Public Comment ● No public comment. Agenda Items ● Approval of Minutes of March 20, 2025 ○ Jana made a motion to accept the minutes of March 20, 2025 as amended, seconded by David. The motion passed unanimously. ● Director’s Report ○ FY2025 Budget Update The fiscal year is 75% completed. One library staff member is on Family and Medical Leave for three weeks. Other staff have been covering for them. Muir can cover any additional cost using excess from heating and electricity. The remaining funds in Library Materials will be going towards databases. Renewals happen in June. ○ FY2026 Budget Update No update. ○ Staff Update The library shared calls to participate in Empowered by Libraries from MBLC and Show Up for Our Libraries from the ALA, two advocacy opportunities for people to communicate with legislators about why libraries are important to them. Muir also asked the Select Board to sign a letter initiated by Mayor Petty of Worcester asking our congressional delegation to voice their resistance to IMLS cuts. Chairperson Nuzzolo signed on behalf of the board. ===PAGE 2=== Melanie, Lydia, and Muir have finalized a proposal for outreach services. Muir reviewed the plan with us. It identifies the target groups for outreach, identifies their needs, and has a list of action items to meet those needs. David made a motion to accept the action item list under the Outreach Plan, seconded by Jana. The motion passed unanimously. ○ Programs Update Muir reported that Deb Goodsell, Director of the Council on Aging, is talking to their Meals on Wheels clients about home delivery of books. Muir is submitting a grant application to Main Street Bank, requesting that they provide funds to pay for summer lunches again this year. ○ Technology Update Another of the new Dell computers broke. Muir is contacting the vendor. ○ Building & Maintenance Update The Proctor Memorial Garden water feature should be running this week. Test pits for the rainwater garden were dug last week. ● Conroy Memorial Garden discussion ○ Bob’s family are supportive of our plans for a garden and would like to work with us to make it happen. ● ARPA Update ○ No update on the amount of contingency funds that will be spent. Muir will follow up with Chris Ruth about this. ● Room Use / Tutors in the Library (deferred from March) ○ There has been a lot of competition for quiet study rooms for tutoring, Zoom calls, and quiet study. ○ Rooms can be reserved for a time slot for up to two weeks. ○ Tutors are running a business. Is there a town rule against using public property to make a profit? ○ Allowing students to be tutored in the library also benefits the students. ○ There are no changes being made to the Quiet Room policy right now. Muir will continue to keep an eye on this. ● Hoopla Report ○ At our last meeting, the Trustees asked Muir if he could cancel Hoopla due to AI and security issues. Hoopla requires a written request and it will take 60 days for cancellation. ○ Muir checked the accounts with suspicious emails and found that we had 20 such accounts, but all seemed OK when he compared them to the ILS. ○ Muir looked at the top 500 items requested and did not see anything that looked like AI. ○ Hoopla tracking personal information may still be an issue, but we do not know. ○ Muir will not be cancelling Hoopla but will keep an eye on reported concerns. ● Library Invested Funds update ○ No update. ● Brooks House update/discussion ○ See first item above. ● Friends Update ○ Janet Winer, Abby Perrine, and Lydia Henshaw are working on the library’s 20th anniversary. ○ The native plant sale and the book and bake sale were discussed. ○ Discussed whether having an ongoing book sale vs two yearly sales, or some combination of those, makes the most sense. This is a continuing discussion. ===PAGE 3=== ○ Robin made a list of what she does for the Friends so that others can pick up those tasks, in anticipation of her becoming a trustee after the election in May. ● Discuss our June meeting time. It falls on June 19th, the Juneteenth holiday. ○ The library is closed on June 19th. We will be meeting on June 12th. ● Board Comments ○ None ● Other ○ None ● Adjourn ○ A motion to adjourn was made by David, seconded by Jana. The motion passed unanimously. Meeting was adjourned at 9:17 p.m. ● Attached Documents ○ March 2025 Director’s Report ○ March 2025 Children’s Services Trustee Report ○ March 2025 Adult Services Department Report ===PAGE 4=== LUNENBURG PUBLIC LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT FY25 Budget Update Staff Update The library shared calls to participate in “Empowered by Libraries” from MBLC, an advocacy opportunity to tell stories about how libraries have been important in your lives. We have bookmarks and postcards that people can write a short narrative about what libraries mean and submit to lovemasslibraries.com. I also requested the Select Board sign on to a letter initiated by Mayor Petty of Worcester asking our Congressional Delegation to voice their resistance to IMLS cuts. Chair Person Nuzzolo signed on behalf of the SB after their April 1 meeting. Melanie, Lydia and I have worked extensively the last few weeks to finalize a proposal for Outreach Services. Our plan is attached. I have discussed and assigned all staff projects in the staffing plan. Joslyn and Lydia are particularly about their projects. Kaitee is on FMLA, no return date yet. I met with Deb Bookis, Director of Learning and Teaching at the Schools to discuss partnerships and the schools draft of a Reconsideration Policy. There are several promising possibilities of partnerships, notably around STEM, OpSciEd curriculum and school library support. I will meet with Deb and Tara (STEM Lab) next. Programs Kate Chadbourne’s concert had excellent turn out and was an impressive performance as always. Kate is also interested in volunteering a workshop for students who are preparing the college essays. Jason Graham’s music clinic continues to draw a nice crown, which was up to 19 in March and 20 in April. FY25 Budget Budget Expended % Expended Calendar Completion LIBRARY DIRECTOR SALARY 90,726$ 67,784$ 75% 75% ASST LIBRARY DIRECTOR SALARY 64,023$ 47,349$ 74% LIBRARY STAFF SALARIES 242,984$ 185,463$ 76% BLDG REPAIRS & MTC -$ -$ SEWERAGE DISPOSAL 1,000$ 634$ 63% ELECTRICITY CHARGES 22,500$ 9,646$ 43% HEATING CHARGES/NATURAL GAS 18,500$ 9,832$ 53% WATER CHARGES 1,000$ 852$ 85% NETWORK MAINTENANCE 500$ 180$ 36% BOOK SERVICE 4,500$ 4,476$ 99% PROGRAMS 15,000$ 8,133$ 54% CONTRACTED SERVICES 2,500$ 732$ 29% CWMARS NETWORK 22,630$ 22,630$ 100% POSTAGE 900$ 334$ 37% OFFICE SUPPLIES 7,000$ 3,306$ 47% CUSTODIAL SUPPLIES 300$ 237$ 79% LIBRARY MATERIAL 94,000$ 31,292$ 33% MILEAGE REIMBURSEMENT 4,000$ 1,004$ 25% TOTALS 592,063$ 393,885$ 67% ===PAGE 5=== LUNENBURG PUBLIC LIBRARY DIRECTOR’S REPORT Craft and Chill last Friday night had great turn out, too, with 27 signed up and 23 attendees. Monday’s grief support group was well attended and received positive feedback from the facilitator. She loved our library. This group was formerly meeting at LAAC. Tuesday night we hosted an Intro to Homeschooling program at the request of a local resident. Virtual Programming has offered a variety of topics, with low engagement. Most registrations seem to be people hoping to receive the recording to watch at a later date. Children’s Programming this month has been spectacular. Sensory Story Time with Pam Wockenfuss, Art with Julie, and STEM programming with Chris Rodrigues twice. Excellent experiences for attendees. Coming up: Thoreau’s “Economy” Reading 4/16, Visible Mending WKSP #2 4/18, Animal Adventures 4/22, Japanese Folktales and Origami 4/23, Crafternoon: Poem in Your Pocket 4/24, Open Mic Poetry Night 4/30 Outreach Outreach Plan proposal has been the focus this month. Building & Maintenance The new cleaning crew continues to have trouble entering the building without setting off the alarm. They are tasked with cleaning everything, so we are keeping an eye on items that might get left out to correct now. The Proctor Memorial Garden water feature should return this coming week. Test pits for the rainwater garden happened last week. Susan Conroy and family are supportive of our plans and are very interested in helping with their labor to create the garden. Technology Another of the new batch of Dell public access computers broke this week. I am reaching out to the vendor to see what can be done. This instance pushes the likelihood of a manufacturing defect up. Mason should be completing an install of security monitor in the Director’s Office this week. Melanie and I are planning the process of our ongoing digital resource assessment. ===PAGE 6=== APRIL 2025 Children's Services Trustee Report MARCH STATS: ACTIVITY NUMBER / PARTICIPANTS LITTLE LISTENERS STORYTIME 5 178 PRESCHOOL STORY TIME 3 65 MAGIC TREE HOUSE BOOK CLUB KITS 1 8 KIDS COMIC CLUB KITS 1 12 DROP-IN CRAFT WITH MISS JOSLYN 1 27 LEGOS AT THE LIBRARY 1 14 HOMESCHOOLERS CRAFT- PUZZLE PAINTING 1 35 S T E M WITH CHRIS- SIMPLE CIRCUITS 1 11 S T E M WITH CHRIS- HYDRAULIC CRITTERS 1 11 SENSORY STORY TIME WITH MISS PAM 1 10 MOTHER’S DAY PLANTING- SEED SEWING 1 25 ART CLASS WITH MISS JULIE 1 23 AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL GRAPHIC NOVEL WKSHP 1 3 STEM KITS STATISTICS: Top 3 Kits: • Ozobot • Flowers and Unicorns Coding • Three Little Pigs Problem Solving 32 KITS 10 Ci MONTHLY BUDGET REPORT: https://tinyurl.com/4bhd9dpu ===PAGE 7=== PATRON QUOTE FOR MARCH: “I love your library! I live in Leominster and work in Brookline, New Hampshire and this is the library that I choose to come to. I love coming here to your library!” HIGHLIGHTS FOR MARCH: SENSORY STORY TIME WITH MISS PAM: Pam Wockenfuss presented Light Up the Night sensory story time for an eager group of 10 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. Parents/caregivers are encouraged to participate along with the children as Pam explains the many benefits of sensory play. Lots of thought and sensory development awareness goes into developing the bins and I love that the kids get to keep them. ART CLASS WITH MISS JULIE We held our first art class with Julie Harrold and the children loved it! Julie has a BFA in Studio Arts, is a former Elementary art teacher/Art director and currently a homeschool mom who also teaches art classes in her spare time. She has a wonderful rapport with the kids, and they all benefit from her supportive, encouraging manner of teaching. ===PAGE 8=== S T E M WITH CHRIS: Two great S T E M classes with Chris this month- Simple Circuits: This workshop focused on creative thinking, and problem solving through circuit wiring concepts such as parallel and series circuits. Experimentation was key as the kids built their projects and got to see what didn’t work and they worked to find a solution that would. Hydraulic Critters: In this class, the kids learned about how hydraulics work while creating a hydraulic bug. MOTHER’S DAY SEED PLANTING: On a cold, drizzly Saturday day we gathered in the Story Craft Room for a two-part plant event. At first, we talked about gardening – how the process of gardening starts and what plants need to grow. Then we planted some marigold seeds. As the seeds sprout and begin to develop, library visitors can watch the seedlings grow until they are ready to become a gift for someone special. The librarians here at LPL will take good care of the growing plants until the kids come back in May to transplant the baby plants into bigger pots and decorate them for Mother’s Day gifting. ===PAGE 9=== UPCOMING EVENTS FOR APRIL: • APRIL 3rd - Magic Tree House Book Club and Kids Comic Club Kits available • APRIL 2-30th - Preschool Story Time for 4’s & 5’s • APRIL 3rd- In-Betweeners Book Club and LPL Kids Book Club • APRIL 5th- S T E M with Chris • APRIL 7th – Homeschoolers Family Meet-Up • APRIL 7-28th - Little Listeners Storytime for 0-3's • APRIL 10th- Art Class with Miss Julie • APRIL 14th – Drop-In Craft with Miss Joslyn • APRIL 15th -Getting Started with Home Schooling in MA- adults • APRIL 22nd - Legos at the Library • APRIL 22ND- Animal Adventures • APRIL 23rd – Japanese Folktales and Origami • APRIL 24th- Crafternoon- A Poem in Your Pocket • APRIL 28th - Homeschoolers Craft Corner Debbie Laffond, Children’s Services Librarian Joslyn Davis, Library Assistant, Children’s Area ===PAGE 10=== Trustee Report Adult Services Department April 2025 Summary of Last 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 on Friday, March 14th was canceled again due to low registrations. ➢ 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 was held on Saturday, March 22nd. We had 13 people visit the library to get their items appraised. There was some initial confusion on timing of the program, but I think those who attended enjoyed the event. ➢ Edward Jones Financial visited the library on March 24th to discuss retirement planning, however we did not have anyone come to the program. We may try another topic at another time. ➢ Jill Pottle came back to teach a second LCC grant funded session of Creative Drawing Basics on Sunday, March 31st to a full class of 10 students. This Month’s Programs & Events ➢ On Saturday April 5th we had 20 people join us for another session of the music clinic series. ➢ Our rescheduled Empathy in Grief workshop was canceled again due to low registrations. We may try again in the fall or create a handout of information to have at the library for patrons to take home. ➢ Janet Winer, Abigal Perrine, and I have launched community information sessions for the public to learn about the upcoming 20th anniversary of the library building. We held one on April 8th that was not well attended but have two more booked for the end of the month. ➢ Our craft & chill program for April was an LCC funded paint night on April 11th. We had 20 people join us for a fun family night out that was a huge hit! ➢ Monthly Music Series: Irish Poetry & Song with Kate Chadbourne was on Sunday April 13th and drew 35 attendees for another stellar performance by Kate! ➢ The library is also the new meeting location for the local grief and healing support group that formerly met at the Lunenburg Adult Activity Center. Their first session will be on Monday April 14th. ➢ A homeschooling advocacy group will present a basic information session on Tuesday April 15th. ➢ On Wednesday April 16th we will host Jay DiPrima for a return program with Henry David Thoreau. This time he will be reading Thoreau’s work “Economy” in period costume. ➢ We have a return visit from Cathy Karp for another Visible Mending Workshop on Friday April 18th. ➢ During the school vacation week there will be another Puzzle Race on Wednesday April 23rd. ➢ To cap off poetry month, we will be hosting an Open Mic Poetry Night on Wednesday April 30th for anyone to come and share their favorite poem with the community. ===PAGE 11=== Recurring Program Update ➢ Book clubs are doing well with excellent discussions at our monthly meetings. o The Baking Book Club ended after our April meeting had no attendees. We may revisit in the fall, but for now we will take a break from this to consider other options. 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 remains steady at 5-6 per week. And new members join periodically so it continues to grow! ➢ The monthly Board Game Brunch programs happening on a Saturday morning have been successful. We have a manageable number of 5-8 people at each event. ➢ Monthly Movie Nights are gaining momentum as word spreads about them. The March program had 13 people in the audience, and they gave very positive feedback about the film. ➢ Sew Simple Sessions have petered out with very limited engagement from patrons. We have had no more than two people at each session since it started in December. Due to the low attendance and drain on staff resources, April will be the last program in the series so we can invest in other areas. 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. We have not joined program offerings for May or beyond at this time. o “Irish Whiskey - History and Recs with Travis Ireland of The Friskey Whiskey Podcast” was on March 17th. We had 2 register but no one joined the program. o “Community Read: Author Talk with Sonia Purnell!” was on March 25th. We did not track stats for engagement from specific community groups, but there were 25 total attendees for the talk. o “A History of Guinness Beer with Brewery Ambassador, Mike Reardon” was on March 31st. There were some technical issues with the connection, but we had 4 people register and 1 joined the talk. o “Local Farms, MA - Produce, Meats, Dairy, Oh My!” was on April 7th. We had 4 people register and 2 attend the event live. o “The Intersection of Climate Action and Romance Novels: A Panel Discussion” was on April 10th. We had 1 register but did not attend the program live. o “Tudor Queens and Ladies in Waiting: A Discussion with Authors Nicola Clark and Jade Scott” was on April 12th. We had 2 register, and no one attended live. o “The Two Nerdy History Girls Ride Again!” will be on April 14th. o “No More Curse! A History of the Red Sox with David Kruh” will be on April 28th. Programming Financial Report ADULT PROGRAMS AS OF 4/17/2025 BUDGET LINE TOTAL % SPENT % ENCUMBERED % REMAINING TOWN $4,500 90% 7% 3% FRIENDS - PROGRAM $3,000 55% 34% 11% FRIENDS - SUPPLIES $500 89% 0% 11% ===PAGE 12=== MUSIC SERIES $6,600 70% 23% 7% GRAND TOTAL $14,600 76% 16% 8% Respectfully submitted, Lydia Paolilli