"The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." – Coretta Scott King
In 2022 the library experienced many challenges with the retirements and departures of beloved employees. The resiliency, patience and kindness of staff during this transition have been truly remarkable. The staff worked together to ensure that our services to the community remained uninterrupted. Finding new employees that fit into our culture of dedication and service to the community took some time, but we added talented people to our team!
2022 was highlighted by our commitment to fiscal responsibility, community engagement and social well-being. We continue to strengthen our partnerships with the Harborfields Central School District, local organizations and outreach services within the community. Library staff and teen volunteers maintained two garden plots at the Robert Kubecka Memorial Organic Garden with the produce from the garden going to a local food pantry. Working with the Harborfields High School Key Club allowed us to establish a Little Free Pantry that was installed at the Library to assist members of the community that may be experiencing food insecurity. Recognizing that we are part of a sustainable ecosystem, we encourage and support various recycling programs and make every attempt to reduce our carbon footprint.
We collaborated with Washington Drive Elementary on a Sensory Garden and Little Free Library. Our ongoing program with Students in Transition at Oldfield Middle School and the High School Career Training program is a continuing success. Donation drives for many organizations including the Little Shelter, Family Service League and Harborfields Alliance for Community Outreach (HACO) run almost year round. Our quarterly Blood Drives in cooperation with the New York Blood Center always surpass expected donations. The generosity of our community is truly amazing!
Our large community events returned in 2022. Record numbers of friends and neighbors attended our Outdoor Craft and Flea Market, outdoor concert, outdoor movie, Great Giveaway and the Fall Craft Fair. The return of the Longest Table Event, run by our incredible Friends of the Harborfields Library and the Greenlawn Civic Association was one of the highlights of the summer. Library programming is back and bigger than ever!
Our programs, customer service, safety and building maintenance is unmatched. A public library is a service industry - our strength lies in the people who work here. It is their dedication that makes Harborfields Public Library what it is. We believe that we can continue our high standards of service and adapt to the ever changing needs of our community with an overall tax increase of 0.98%.
As always, thank you to the entire Harborfields Community for your support and we look forward to another year of working with you!
Sincerely,
Ryan Athanas, Library Director
Linda Meglio, Assistant Library Director
