Kentlands resident Richard Etches holds up a sign against any more library funding cuts along with a battery-operated candle at a meeting to discuss the county’s budget earlier this year.
The volunteers have also set up a display at the front entrance of the library to educate visitors about how important it is to avoid any further cuts in the library’s budget.
According to the volunteers, Montgomery County cut more than 40 percent of library funding last year, which they said is a far greater percentage than any other agency.
“There is definitely a ground swell of concern amongst library members that any further cuts in our budget here at this library and the prospect of even library closures at other locations around the county will cause an immense outburst of dismay against our elected officials and those that manage the finances of the county,” said Ed Hsu, chairman of the Quince Orchard Library Advisory Committee. “We all realize that we must share the responsibility in balancing the budget but we do expect it to be fair.”
The volunteers plan on forwarding more than 3,000 signatures to Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett before the end of March.
Kentlands resident Richard Etches said he recently met with County Council member Phil Andrews about the issue too. Etches teachers English language classes on Tuesdays at the library and said the issue is about more than just having a place for borrowing books.
“The library is more than a collection of lovely books. It is a community and educational center for all of us, regardless of age, whether we are from down the street or across the ocean,” Etches said.
For more information about getting involved, contact the committee at quinceorchardlac@gmail.com.
Thank you Sonya for this piece. Very much appreciated. We hope as many of your readers as possible will be able to visit The Quince Orchard Library over the next few weeks and sign the ‘Appeal Cards’ that will be delivered to the County Executive, Mr Leggett at the end of March. Richard Etches, Vice Chairman, Quince Orchard Library Advisory Committee.
Thank you Sonya. This piece is very much appreciated by those of us who are supporting the Quince Orchard Library. We hope, that as many of your readers as possible, will visit
the Library over the next few weeks and sign the ‘Appeal Cards’ that we will be presenting to the County Executive, Mr Leggett, at the end of March.
Richard Etches, Vice Chairman, Quince Orchard Library Advisory Committee.