The last time I wrote about Kansas
City, I told you about a phantom cow.
This time I’m writing about a real library.
This information is from the Kansas City Star of 9/26/12
The first library in the Argentine
District of Kansas City, Kansas was built in 1917 from money donated by Andrew
Carnegie. It had a grand sweeping stairwell, which was architecturally impressive,
but a serious barrier to those with mobility challenges. The library had limited
space and old wiring. Only
twenty computers were available to users.
It wasn’t unusual to have waiting lines four to five people deep for
each machine. The Argentine is a
working class area with a high percentage of Hispanic families.
Years ago, neighborhood volunteers
started raising money for a new building.
Through one of the worst economies in United States history, elementary
students donated pennies; junior high and high schoolers tossed in the
occasional dollar. Fund raisers
such as car washes added cash. The
hard times provided more motivation since people knew a library could provide
steps toward a better way of life.
The Kansas City, Kansas School
District, which runs the library system in the city told volunteers if they
raised 1.5 to 2 million dollars, the district would put in the rest. After a couple of years, when the fund
reached $500,000, the district bought an old grocery store and started
demolition for the new building. The
volunteers continued their efforts saving penny by penny.
On September 26, 2012, the new
South Branch Library opened in the Argentine District of Kansas City, Kansas. The
new library has 22 laptops, 20 desktop computers for children and 24 more for
adults. It was built on one level
for handicapped access, which makes it great for people in a nearby retirement
home.
Kudos to the people of the
Argentine.
8 comments:
Wonderful story, Warren. Thanks for sharing it. A friend of mine volunteers for a tiny branch library in a strip shopping center. The dry cleaning business went out of business and they will soon expand into it. Since their first priority was the children's section, the expansion will increase the number of adult books.
Glad to see positive news.
What an inspiring story, Warren. I use two different libraries in my area and both are well used. My writers group meets at the one in the largest city in our county - small by many standards - and this past Saturday when we met, the parking lot was almost filled, and it's a sizeable parking lot. I'm glad libraries are still thriving.
What a great story, Warren. It's always nice to hear a community coming together & succeeding in their efforts for such a worthy thing!
EB, Good on your friend!
Gloria, The library I visit most is usually full of students of all ethnic backgrounds.
I agree, Alyx. I'm glad people recognize the importance of libraries.
Kudos indeed.
As a retired librarian, I particularly appreciate this story. As a writer, ditto. Good libraries are desperately needed for civilized societies.
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