STAFFORD — It all started in 2024 at our first “Our Town Gathering.”
We were celebrating all that Stafford was doing to make our town better. People were very impressed with all that we had done to renovate and improve the library but a few looked out the windows to the backyard and were horrified at how ugly the view was.
They were right, and we had thought so too, but there had been too many projects already and too little money. Our view out of our beautifully restored glittering leaded glass windows was the back alley with a huge electric pole, ugly electric wires running everywhere, a shipping container box, trash cans, police cars and the not too pretty backs of all the buildings on main street.
None of it was our “stuff” so what could we do? One of our loved patrons, Audrey Hedrick, passed away and her family wanted her memorial money to go towards an outside “reading spot.” This was seed money to start our newest project of “blocking the ugly view.” Other seed came from Jack and Kelly Hartnett. Jack is an SHS graduate class of 1979.
The KHF Children’s Health Endowment Fund from Golden Belt Community Foundation of $3,780.00 enabled us to complete the plans we had made. We are thankful to GBCF for their continued support of our library and helping us serve Stafford in the best way possible.
These funds enabled us to engage Bornholdt landscaping to create a tree-filled, view-blocking area with a reading spot. The children that attended Stafford Recreation’s summer program painted three big “Quilt Blocks” to hide our AC units. The children were excited to paint “art” for the library and very proud of their contribution to a place that will be used by them as a special place to read and play.
Thank you again KHF Children’s Health Endowment Fund for investing in improving Stafford for our most important “Assets” our youth.
Gerry Hildebrand is the head librarian for the Nora Larabee Memorial Library, 108 N. Union St. in Stafford. Phone 620-234-5762, email larabeelibrary@gmail.com or visit Facebook at Nora Larabee Memorial Library. Library hours are 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday; 2-6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday.
