{"id":118885,"date":"2026-06-29T20:50:15","date_gmt":"2026-06-29T20:50:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/118885\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T20:50:15","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T20:50:15","slug":"warsaw-friends-of-the-library-sees-boost-in-donations-after-city-council-rejects-17-million-bond","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/118885\/","title":{"rendered":"Warsaw Friends of the Library sees boost in donations after city council rejects $17 million bond"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>
\nBy Dan Spalding
News Now Warsaw<\/p>\n

WARSAW \u2014 Warsaw Friends of the Library has seen a significant surge in support over the past six weeks after Warsaw City Council rejected a $17 million bond.<\/p>\n

The vote means the library won\u2019t be able to seek another bond for at least two years, and officials say they have no way to cover the cost of big-ticket repairs, which they say are inevitable.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Soon after the council vote, Friends of the Library announced plans to raise the $17 million \u2014 a gargantuan goal that seems beyond their means.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The books and cookie sale attracted a large turnout Saturday morning at the Warsaw Community Public Library parking lot. News Now Warsaw photo by Dan Spalding.<\/p>\n

The group typically raises about $10,000 a year, but in the past six weeks, since the vote, they\u2019ve collected roughly $5,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bree Robinson, who heads up the Friends of the Library bookstore and is on the FOTL board, said she realizes the goal might be out of reach, but that something had to be done.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She said the vote has motivated FOTL and the library\u2019s supporters.<\/p>\n

FOTL has a little more than a dozen volunteers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt definitely kind of gave us a new perspective on how important our fundraising actually is. We work hard all year to raise as much money as we can, but now it feels more critical,\u201d Robinson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt feels more important to do everything we can above and beyond what we already were,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

She said the reaction to the vote began within hours.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe day after the vote, we started getting donations. Like, my PayPal just started blowing up, and I was just like, okay,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people in this community do care, and they realized that there\u2019s a need, and they were willing to chip in what they could immediately, and it\u2019s continued. We continue to get donations almost daily,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Robinson made the comments while overseeing a \u201cbooks and cookies\u201d sale held in the parking lot Saturday morning.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Almost all of the books sold on Saturday were sold in exchange for donations rather than at specific prices for each book.<\/p>\n

She said such events typically generate about $1,500.<\/p>\n

Many of the opponents of the bond vote who spoke at the May 18 vote said they appreciate the library and its role in the community, but repeatedly urged the library to rely more on fundraising rather than raise property taxes.<\/p>\n

FOTL provides money for small projects, such as when the water fountain recently needed repairs, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, you know, we don\u2019t have $900,000 for the chiller system,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality is it\u2019s very difficult, if not impossible, to raise that amount of money\u00a0\u2026 it\u2019s very wishful thinking that this could just be a pass-the-hat around the community thing. I wish that it were, but the reality is it just isn\u2019t really feasible,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The library board has also established a fund through the Kosciusko County Community Foundation.<\/p>\n

You can learn more about both at warsawlibrary.org<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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