Lakeport turns out in support of reading room

If there was anyone on the Laconia Public LIbrary's Board of Trustees who was under the impression that no one in Lakeport cared anymore about the Goss Reading Room, that view was proven incorrect last evening. The small, century-old satellite library location was packed with people standing shoulder-to-shoulder in order to demonstrate their desire to see the only library in Lakeport kept open.

Trustees of the city's library, reacting to a request from City Hall to trim $20,000 from their 2010-11 budget, came before City Council in April with a proposal to close the reading room, which is open just 10 hours each week and has recently seen far less activity than the main library at Veterans Square.

However, the proposal was not met favorably at council, especially by Councilor Armand Bolduc, who represents Lakeport. Other members of the council supported his insistence that the reading room be kept open, striking a deal with the trustees that if they could cut just $10,000 from their budget while keeping the satellite library operating, the council would find another $10,000 in cuts elsewhere in the city's budget.

The organizer of last night's demonstration was Lois Juris, a first grade teacher at Elm Street School who has incorporated the reading room into her regular curriculum, walking her students the half-mile distance from the school to the library.

One of her students, Emma Keenan, was among the many who showed up last night to celebrate their local library. She even made a poster, encouraging others to do the same, "so people could read it and for the trustees of the library to keep it open... It's a nice place, our class can walk to it, it's not far from our school."

Cheryl Keenan, Emma's mother, said "In this area of town, it's an asset to have it here, within close proximity of the school."

Chuck George was another parent in attendance. He said his four daughters have all spent time in the reading room. "It's so close to the Elm Street School, the kids love coming down here. We hear about it all the time."

Katie George, a fifth grader and one of Chuck's daughters, said she's been coming to the reading room for years. "I like the different books they have," she said. She also goes to the city's main library, but she added, "I like it here better."

The gathering included Elm Street Principal Eric Johnson, who said the reading room "means a lot," not just for the school but for the community of Lakeport. "I'm so proud of our first grade, Mrs. Juris, and their activism," he said.

"It's kind of a little-known treasure. I don't know if people don't know it's here, but our first grade is trying to change that," Johnson said.

In addition to the Juris class, all other first grade classes and one fifth grade class have begun utilizing the reading room, as well as an after-school writing club.

"It's wonderful to see so many people here," said Wanda Tibbetts, president of the Lakeport Community Association. If the reading room were to close, she said Lakeport would lose a piece of its heritage and history. "We don't have many historical buildings in Lakeport," she added.

Led by Tibbetts, a group called the Friends of the Goss Reading Room is forming as a non-profit corporation with a goal of ensuring the long-term viability of the facility. The first meeting will be held Wednesday, June 2 at 7 p.m. at the Lake Opechee Inn & Spa. For more information, Tibbetts can be reached at 524-5591 (home) or 524-5473 (work).

The demonstration did not fall on deaf ears, it appears. Bob Selig, chairman of the board of trustees, was also present at the reading room yesterday.

"You saw the emotional reaction of the council and the people of Lakeport," he said "They said to us, we want this reading room open."

Later last night, Selig and the rest of the trustees met and rescinded the earlier vote to close the reading room. Selig said Juris attended that meeting and made a presentation and he is impressed that an effort will be made to get more groups of students from Elm Street classrooms to regularly use the facility, and well as to encourage the family members and friends of those students to do the same.

"It's very easy for the people of Lakeport to keep it open," Selig said. "Use it."