Special library friendship now 30 years old

For 30 years, Loutit District Library has had a special friend. The Friends of Loutit District Library, a group of volunteers that raises money for various library projects, has played a key role in helping out the library through the years. The Friends celebrated 30 years of service and support to Loutit District Library with a community open house on Wednesday at the Grand Haven library.

Len Painter

Grand Haven

Jun 16, 2011

The primary means for raising funds for the library is the Friends’ Cheapstacks Bookstore — one of the most active library bookstores in Michigan, according to John Smolenski, president of the Friends organization. A lot of libraries just have tables or a few shelves of books for sale, but the Friends of Loutit District Library have their own room with shelves filled with books, Smolenski said.

Carrie Miel, vice president of Friends, said the sale of books has been an extremely successful fundraiser for the organization. She said the sale of books alone generated nearly $7,000 in donations to the library in the last fiscal year.

Ann Kammeraad, who has been a library volunteer for 29 years, said she is proud of the contributions the Friends have been able to make to the library through the years.

The Loutit District Library Board of Directors honored Kammeraad for her years of service with a special presentation at the open house.

To read more of this story, see today’s print edition of the Grand Haven Tribune.