The recent Dining Among the Stacks event raised $11,000 for the Literacy Legacy Fund, pushing the fund past the $100,000 mark.
“It was nice to see everyone having such a good time,” said Western Counties Regional Library director Erin Comeau. “We couldn’t have asked for a better combination of food, entertainment and company. And to top it all off, we reached our fundraising goal for the evening.”
An important fundraiser for Western Counties Regional Library, the sold-out event, which was held Nov. 2, offered people fine dining, live music, humorous readings of Nova Scotia author Lesley Crewe and a silent auction at Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Library in Yarmouth.
The music was performed by the trio of Freddy Mujica, Michael Carbonell and Nick Jackson. The trio wowed the crowd with its mix of Latin and soft rock music, making for splendid evening, says Comeau.
“Many people left that evening asking to reserve tickets for next year,” she said. “If that is any indication of interest, then we would expect to be able to bring the event back to the library in two years.”
The event runs on alternate years to the library’s Adopt-A-Book campaign, and both are critical pieces of mandatory library fundraising.
“Regional library boards in Nova Scotia are required to raise three per cent of their operating budgets,” Comeau said. “With a budget of over $1.6 million, fundraisers such as Dining Among the Stacks are necessary to be able to meet our commitments while also continuing to provide quality service.”
The silent auction brought in $1,875 and the book bonanza raised $1,400 toward the total. During the book bonanza, the person who purchases the book containing the golden bookmark takes home the reading nook, consisting of a new chair, side table, lamp and throw blanket.
Sponsorship is critical to the evening’s success, says Ian White, public relations manager at the library.
“Scotiabank was our presenting sponsor for the third time,” White said. “Having such levels of sponsorship helps make the event such a success.”
Other sponsors included White Perkins Associates Chartered Professional Accountants, Tri-Star Industries, RBC Royal Bank, Coastal Financial Credit Union, United Library Services, Atlantic Superstore and Penguin Random House Canada in addition to the donation of furnishings for the book nook by the three local businesses.
