News – Adults – Springfield City Library

Springfield celebrates National Library Week despite budget challenges (WWLP)

The theme for National Library Week 2025 is “Drawn to the Library!” But it’s getting hard to observe as libraries throughout Massachusetts are facing budget challenges.

View on WWLP

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – On Wednesday inside the Sixteen Acres Library Branch, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno issued a proclamation to mark National Library Week.

The theme for National Library Week 2025 is “Drawn to the Library!” But it’s getting hard to observe locally as libraries throughout Massachusetts are facing a budget challenge this year.

Massachusetts gets $3.6 million in federal funding for library services, then the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners gives that money to local libraries. That funding was disrupted this week when President Trump ordered the entire staff of the Institute of Museums and Library Services to be placed on paid leave for 90 days, which stopped the processing of grant dollars.

Now, libraries across the state are waiting on updates from the library board about potential funding cuts or delays. But staff at the Sixteen Acres Library Branch encourages the public to use their voices to make a difference.

“Think about what’s important to you and reach out to your elected officials to let them know that funding that comes to the state has an impact on you,” said Jean Canosa Albano, Assistant Director for Public Services at Springfield City Library.

Despite the uncertainty, Springfield libraries will continue celebrating National Library Week with special events. For a list of events, visit springfieldlibrary.org.

Mayor Sarno Joins with Worcester Mayor Petty and 24 Other Mayors and Municipal Leaders to Fight for Library Funding

April 4, 2025. Read on the City of Springfield site.

Springfield, MA – Mayor Domenic J. Sarno joined with Worcester Mayor Joseph Petty and 24 other mayors and municipal leaders from across the State to fight for our local libraries. Mayor Sarno and his fellow mayors wrote to the Massachusetts Congressional delegation to share their concerns over an executive order signed on March 14, 2025 that would target federal funding to libraries and museums through the Institute of Museums and Library Services (IMLS). IMLS is the single largest source of federal funding for libraries.

In Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) received $3.6 million from IMLS’ grants to State programs, including statewide research databases, summer reading and Statewide eBooks programs, just to name a few. Cuts to IMLS would adversely impact the MBLC and could potentially impact these services and programs offered to our residents by our Springfield City Library.

Mayor Sarno states, “Today, I join with Mayor Joseph Petty of Worcester and my fellow mayors and municipal leaders from across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to fight for our local Library systems and our residents, especially our children. Together, we are asking our Congressional delegation to protect our local libraries. I am very proud of our Springfield City Library, led by Director Molly Fogarty. Director Fogarty and her dedicated team does such a tremendous job providing a vast array of programs and reading opportunities for our students, children, seniors and adults. On average, nearly 62,000 eBooks are accessed every year through our Springfield City Library. I am also proud of the fact that Springfield is one of the few communities that maintains local neighborhood libraries too.”

“Our library branches do so much more than just provide reading books,” Mayor Sarno continued. “They are a place where individuals of all ages can go and enjoy the programs that are available. Neighborhood library branches are an essential component of our community. They not only provide much-needed library services and reading materials for residents and kids, but they also serve as a gathering and meeting space for our community’s different programs and initiatives. A place where our residents and their families can gather to meet, and where our children can learn and play. Our Libraries enhance the quality of life in our community and are a source of great pride. My administration will continue to work with all of our local, state and federal partners to preserve this community treasure and the vital programs and resources they offer.”

Library services threatened by Trump funding cuts

Local libraries are primarily funded by local property taxes to operate, but they depend on federal dollars to pay for statewide services, like databases and e-books, that interconnect every library

April 2, 2025. Read at WBUR.org for more content.

Libraries across Massachusetts are worried about how they’ll provide vital services such as interlibrary loans, e-books and access to databases in the wake of an executive order President Trump signed Monday.

The state gets $3.6 million in federal funding for library services, and the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners distributes that money to local libraries to supplement their budgets. This funding pipeline was disrupted this week when Trump ordered the entire staff of the Institute of Museums and Library Services to be placed on paid leave for 90 days, effectively halting the processing of grant dollars.

Maureen Amyot, director of the state library board, said concern had been building since the Trump administration’s first pause on federal funding in January, but she and her colleagues were still shocked when Monday’s executive order came down.

Amyot and her board worry they’ll have to cut funding to local libraries if the federal money doesn’t start flowing again soon. Any cuts would disrupt services that libraries must provide to the public under state law, she said.

Local libraries are primarily funded by local property taxes to operate, but they depend on federal dollars to pay for statewide services, like databases and e-books, that interconnect every library. Without those federal dollars, libraries would not be able to afford those services on their own, and the state would not be able to make up the difference, Amyot said.

While the order leaves the grants in limbo, Amyot said, the staff also wonders what will come next from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, which is firing workers across federal agencies.

“It’s such a fluid situation right now – everything is changing – that we’re just sort of in a holding pattern,” she said.

Libraries across the state are awaiting word from the Massachusetts library board about funding cuts or delays. Their level of concern varies depending on how much they rely on federal money. In a community like Waltham, the public library is fully funded by the city, while federal funding helps pay for staff salaries in Amherst.

Libraries can also apply directly for funding through the state library board’s three grant categories — Explore, Impact and Inspire — provided by IMLS’s federal dollars. Before Monday’s executive order, Amyot said the board was set to award 18 libraries with smaller “Explore Grants,” which come in $4,000 and $7,500 checks totaling $93,000 in awards. They allow smaller libraries to implement things like English learning classes, citizenship resources and preservation services.

Jean Canosa Albano, assistant director at Springfield City Library, said her library is scheduled to receive one of those grants. It would help purchase materials for people who want to gain U.S. citizenship and improve English language skills, highly desirable resources in her community.

Now, they have to wait.

“If we did not have [MBLC’s] expertise or the services they help provide, we would not be able to quickly rush in and fill that void that will be left,” Albano said. “We don’t have those funds elsewhere.”

Another concern is funding for information access. That’s secured through June 30, but librarians worry about how they’ll pay for databases and subscriptions after that date, especially for patrons who can’t afford to subscribe to periodicals they enjoy. The impact is expansive: Last year, Massachusetts residents downloaded over 9 million texts, according to the MLBC, and 60% of database usage comes from schools.

“These databases are not only for researchers but also for families who are going to buy their next car [looking] up Consumer Reports,” said Sharon Sharry, director of Jones Library in Amherst. “It’s the way people can afford information.”

The statewide e-book and summer reading programs are also paid for with federal funding, and many libraries say they would not be able to fund them locally.

Boston Public Library has received several hundred thousand dollars to support things like curriculum development and digitization of resources, such as an online high school program for adults. BPL president David Leonard said he worries about funding for next year and hopes Congress will act to preserve IMLS.

“Is this something that Congress can act on, because support for libraries and museums nationwide has generally been a very bipartisan act?” Leonard said. “We just don’t know.”

Librarians hope politicians representing Republican-leaning states will step up to protect funding. In response to Trump’s initial order for IMLS to be “eliminated to the maximum extent,” a bipartisan group of senators sent a letter to the administration defending federal funding for both cultural institutions.

“We are so lucky to live in Massachusetts, where library services are supported by our state officials,” Sharry said. “On the flip side, we are kind of left preaching to the choir … What we really need are people in the red states to advocate.”

Andrea Fiorillo, head of public services at the Reading Public Library, said her library is using a $20,000 grant for a program called “Rooted in Reading,” which explores community gardening. She pointed out that federal funding for libraries constitutes a miniscule portion of the federal budget.

“That comes out to about 87 cents per person per year,” said Fiorillo, who co-chairs the Massachusetts Library Association’s intellectual freedom committee. “What libraries turn around for our communities with that little bit of funding is almost miraculous. We take our tiny little bit and we just create these vibrant community centers.”

Bus Tour Revives Tradition, Puts Libraries in Spotlight (Business West)

The tour, set for Saturday, April 12, will visit each of the city’s Carnegie libraries.

March 14, 2025. Read the article on Business West for additional content

Pages of the Past

The original Springfield Library has been lost to history, but the planned bus tour is designed to generate appreciation for the libraries still standing.

Kate Benson says she doesn’t know why the original Springfield Library, opened in 1871, was eventually torn down.

The impressive, Gothic-style structure was only 40 years old when its replacement, the central library that still stands on State Street today, was opened, she said, adding that it was moved a few hundred yards to make way for the new library and serve the city while it was being built. And, in theory, it could have been moved again to another location

“We don’t really know why it came down — and there’s no real record of why,” said Benson, a special-education team chair in Chicopee by day, and also a member of the Springfield Preservation Trust (SPT) and self-described “history addict,” adding that it doesn’t really matter why the landmark was demolished. What does matter is that a piece of the city’s past and an architectural treasure can now be seen only in grainy photos and color postcards, which were very popular in the day.

It is a desire to enable the public to fully appreciate similar structures — and to perhaps ensure that they don’t suffer the same fate as the original library — that has prompted the SPT and several partnering organizations to come together to create a bus tour (set for Saturday, April 12, with Benson as the tour guide) of the central library and several branches, including four structures known simply as the Carnegie libraries.

These are the central library, the Forest Park branch, the Indian Orchard branch, and the former Memorial Square branch, now the Greek Cultural Center — four of the 2,509 libraries built between 1883 and 1929 with money donated by Scottish-American businessman and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie.

Built in the early 1900s, those four libraries, and the others on the tour, are blasts from the past that can still be enjoyed today. And so, in many respects, is this bus tour, called “Pages of the Past,” said Erica Swallow, president of the SPT.

“The library went from being a membership-only establishment to being open to the public, open to the community. To have four of those buildings in Springfield that really symbolized access to knowledge, and access to betterment, is really special.”

Indeed, the once-annual Bus Tour of Historic Springfield, a partnership between the SPT and Peter Pan Bus Lines, is back after a nearly 30-year hiatus, and with many goals in mind, said Swallow, adding that this endeavor is a collaboration between several groups, including the SPT, the Springfield Museums, the Springfield City Library, and Peter Pan.

As for goals, she listed everything from showcasing those libraries to cultivating the next generation of preservationists in Springfield.

“The trust has been trying to bring in the next generation of preservationists,” Swallow explained, adding that new programs like the libraries tour, as well as existing initiatives such as house tours and walking tours (more on them later), are effective ways to bring people into Springfield’s past, while also celebrating the present and getting them involved.

Danielle Veronesi, senior director of Marketing at Peter Pan Bus Lines, who was approached by Swallow about resurrecting the bus tour, agreed, noting that Peter Pan, which has a lengthy history in Springfield and this region, is enthusiastic about its role in the partnership presenting the tour.

“We’re proud to be part of Springfield history, and also proud of the role we’ve played in enabling others to learn that history and better appreciate the city and many of its architectural landmarks,” she told BusinessWest. “That’s why we wanted Peter Pan to be a partner in this initiative.”

Chapter and Verse

Rachel Gravel, manager of Adult & Youth Information for the Springfield Libraries, said the building of the Carnegie libraries represented a major shift in how libraries were perceived — and used by the public.

“The library went from being a membership-only establishment to being open to the public, open to the community,” she said, noting that, until that time, most libraries, including Springfield’s, were private. “To have four of those buildings in Springfield that really symbolized access to knowledge, and access to betterment, is really special.”

This shift will be among the many talking points on the tour, said Swallow, adding that the program is designed to provide insight into Springfield’s most historically and architecturally significant libraries, offering a glimpse into their storied pasts and lasting impact on the city’s cultural and educational landscape.

Benson agreed, noting that her research into the libraries that will be showcased on tour — seven in all, including the four Carnegie libraries — has been an intriguing and rewarding experience.

“I was unaware that we had Carnegie libraries, and I have a minor obsession with Carnegie libraries in New York City because they had hidden apartments, which, unfortunately, the Springfield ones don’t, because they were not 24-hour libraries, like New York’s,” she explained. “It was interesting to do the research to figure out how they made the decisions to create branch libraries, who got one first, and how they funded it — and also how they took the original Springfield Library, which was a private library, and made it something that was open to the public; it’s an incredibly interesting history.”

Jeanne Fontaine, travel coordinator for Springfield Museums, a partner on many SPT initiatives, agreed, noting that the upcoming bus tour dovetails effectively with the Springfield Museums’ own program of monthly day trips to other museums and destinations, such as the Newport Flower Show and the Metropolitan Opera.

The most recent such trip was to the American Heritage Museum in Hudson, where visitors can explore the nation’s conflicts, from the Revolutionary War to today.

Swallow said the bus tour is another initiative undertaken by the SPT to bring attention to city landmarks and encourage preservation of sites with historic or architectural significance, or both.

Others include its popular Second Saturday Walking Tours, which originate at the Museums and focus on the downtown area, an annual walking tour of Springfield Cemetery, and a winter lecture series.

There’s also the annual Historic Homes Tour. Previously a bus tour that took participants to different corners of the city, it is now a walking tour focused annually on a specific neighborhood; this year it will be McKnight, said Swallow, adding that the homes tour is how many long-time SPT members first became engaged with the organization.

History Lessons

That was the case with Marilyn Sutin, who first went on the tour in 1979, became heavily involved with the Springfield Preservation Trust, and is still volunteering for the group 45 years later.

Like Swallow, she said the libraries tour is another way to bring Springfield’s past into the present and encourage others to get involved in preservation efforts.

Tickets for the bus tour can be purchased on Eventbrite; the cost is $20 for SPT and Springfield Museums members, and $25 for non-members. All proceeds go toward the trust’s mission of historic preservation in Springfield.

T-Birds, Springfield City Library Expand Boomer’s Reading Club for 2024-25 Season

Boomer’s Reading Club will return for the 2024-25 season with more dates and new library branches serving as hosts.

Read at the Springfield Thunderbirds website

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – The Springfield Thunderbirds, in collaboration with the Springfield City Library, are proud to announce that Boomer’s Reading Club will return for the 2024-25 season with more dates and new library branches serving as hosts for the meeting dates.

Established last season, Boomer’s Reading Club will prominently feature T-Birds forward Drew Callin, team mascot Boomer, and various additional T-Birds staff and players throughout the season. Boomer’s Reading Club aims to create a love of reading for young Springfield school students of all ages.

In addition to the interactive sessions with Callin, the Springfield Thunderbirds Foundation will continue its pledge to the program by donating gifts and supplies to each of the seven Springfield City Library branches participating in the initiative.

“We are proud to continue our support of Drew and the Springfield City Library toward this incredibly meaningful community partnership,” said Thunderbirds President Nathan Costa. “We deeply value this relationship and hope that, in addition to encouraging a lifelong love of reading among our youngest fans, Boomer’s Reading Club can create core memories in Springfield children’s lives for years to come.”

The complete list of dates is as follows – all Boomer’s Reading Club sessions will run from 3:45 to 4:45 p.m., and all of these sessions are open to the public:

Wednesday, Nov. 13 @ Springfield Central Library (220 State Street, in 1st floor Children’s Room)
Tuesday, Nov. 26 @ Indian Orchard Branch (44 Oak Street)
Tuesday, Jan. 7 @ Sixteen Acres Branch (1187 Parker Street)
Thursday, Jan. 9 @ East Springfield Branch (21 Osborne Terrace)
Thursday, Jan. 16 @ East Forest Park Branch (136 Surrey Road) –NEW DATE
Tuesday, Jan. 28 @ Brightwood Branch (359 Plainfield Street)
Wednesday, Feb. 26 @ Mason Square Branch (765 State Street)

“We’re so excited to partner with the Springfield Thunderbirds for a third season of Boomer’s Reading Club. We’re expanding to even more libraries this year, adding Brightwood and Indian Orchard branches for seven total visits. Families will have fun seeing their hockey heroes read with them and inspire their children and grandkids to get a library card, visit the library, and pick up some great books,” said Jean Canosa Albano, Assistant Director at Springfield City Library. “Going to a T-Birds game is fun for the whole family, and so is going to the Springfield City Library! The Club combines reading, library activities, and a chance to discover why getting into reading when you are young is so important and fun.”

Families looking for more information about Boomer’s Reading Club can contact the team at (413) 739-4625 or by visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com.

Do you know what you can do with a Springfield City Library Card?

Mayor Sarno joins Springfield Library staff in supporting the library’s initiative to sign up 10,000 members for library cards.

Read at the City’s website

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno joined Springfield Library Community Relations Coordinator Jamillah Medina Nova in supporting the library’s initiative to sign up 10,000 members for library cards. The library card will get you access to all of the resources and services that our city’s libraries have to offer, allows you to place a hold, use the electronic resources on the eLibrary, and so much more.

You can get a library card by visiting your local library branch in person to get full access to all of our physical and digital resources. If you would like instant access to our online resources, you can apply for a CW MARS eCard online! The eCard can be upgraded to a full library card later, if desired.

We’d like to remind residents that the library offers much more than just books! Chromebooks, hotspots, print-fax-scan, meeting rooms, video games, e-reading, and more!

The initiative teamed with Brother Johnnie Muhammad to provide free Shabazz wings to children who applied for a library card this past weekend, which was a huge success.

Mayor Sarno states, “I want to thank Jamillah Medina Nova and the entire library staff for working so hard every day to provide all of these incredible FREE resources to our community. Shout to our friend Brother Johnnie Muhammad for his support this past weekend too. Neighborhood library branches are an essential component of our community. They not only provide much-needed library services and reading materials for residents and kids, but they also serve as a gathering and meeting space for our community’s different programs and initiatives. Springfield Libraries serve as a community center for educational and cultural programming, as well as a social gathering place for our students and the surrounding community. It serves as a hub for free information and technology, social and civic participation, personal enrichment, and lifelong learning.”

The Springfield City Library offers nearly 5000 educational and recreational activities annually.

To learn more, visit www.springfieldlibrary.org; to acquire a Library Card, visit https://www.springfieldlibrary.org/…/get-a-library-card/

Mayor Domenic Sarno and Community Relations Coordinator Jamillah Medina Nova pose with an oversized Springfield library card.

BizGrow conference offers free legal help to entrepreneurs

Current and aspiring small business owners are getting a helping hand from a new local partnership.

Author Esmeralda Santiago speaks at Springfield Library

The Springfield City Library invited an acclaimed author for a special Hispanic Heritage Month discussion.

Program aims to boost small businesses: BizGrow to hold its first WMass expo (Springfield Republican)

The Springfield City Library is joining forces with Lawyers for Civil Rights Boston to stage the first BizGrow Conference in Western Massachusetts.

Read on Masslive or visit our elibrary for free access to the Republican.

SPRINGFIELD — A program that gives free legal advice and business support to entrepreneurs is coming to Springfield from Boston, where it has seen nearly a decade of success helping hundreds of small business owners.

The Springfield City Library is joining forces with Lawyers for Civil Rights Boston to stage the first BizGrow Conference in Western Massachusetts. The legal support and business expo is being held at the library’s central branch on State Street in October.

“When I got the email from Lawyers for Civil Rights, I jumped right out of my chair to go talk to our director about being able to host this conference,” said Elizabeth McKinstry, training and programming librarian. “It felt like exactly the opportunity we need to talk more about the kinds of resources available for small businesses.”

The event is free and open to all small business owners, not just those who run women, LGBTQ or minority-owned enterprises.

LCR has been offering the expo in Boston for the last seven years, and helped some 100 businesses last year alone, said Roz Freeman, the organization’s entrepreneurship manager.

“We want to bring these in-person, free legal resources to businesses in other parts of the state that don’t always get the same resources Boston gets. It’s important to bring these resources to Springfield to support economic growth and wealth creation in the region,” said Freeman.

Freeman said her organization has relationships with thousands of volunteers that work pro bono with small businesses across the state. Many entrepreneurs say a lack of information and access to experts is not only a barrier to entry, but it also threatens their existence.

Lawyers at the Springfield conference will be offering advice on everything from creating business structures and entering into leases to building partnerships and establishing trademarks.

“It’s important for them to be getting legal support to protect themselves, the businesses and continue to grow and generate wealth,” said Freeman. “It can be a huge disadvantage for business owners who might not have the connections they need. We’re here to help them get connected to those resources.”

Organizers said entrepreneurs should register for half-hour meetings with lawyers. Many of their questions could be answered at the conference, while other discussions may continue beyond the event. The legal services are always free, said Freeman.

“Ahead of the meeting, we call business owners to help them clarify their question, to make sure they can make the most out of the time with the attorney, who will have a heads up about the question that the business owner is hoping to discuss,” according to Freeman, who said business owners will be paired with attorneys specializing in real estate, employment, corporate law, intellectual property and other disciplines.

According to the U. S. Small Business Administration, there are nearly 700 thousand small businesses in Massachusetts, making up 99.5 percent of all businesses in the commonwealth. The enterprises employ 1.5 million people — that is 44.7 percent of all Bay State workers, according to the SBA.

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of this community. They’re the ones out there grinding every day. They’re employing local people. Their investment goes back into the community. They are the bedrock of the city, and we are thrilled to be involved in providing them connections to their resources that will make them even more successful,” said McKinstry.

McKinstry told The Republican small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs are constantly using library resources to write business plans, research opportunities, tap into databases that can help them generate sales leads and find resources they need to establish, fund and run their operations.

The expo is designed to be a one-stop-shopping event for anyone needing to get this information by networking with more than a dozen organizations.

“This will be be an excellent start for anyone trying to make local and regional contacts. No event is going to cover every possible scenario for what someone’s looking, but making those connections, getting business cards and figuring out whom you’re speaking with is the way to make the connections for the piece you haven’t quite fit into your puzzle,” said McKinstry.

The BizGrow Conference is free and open to the public on Oct. 10 at the Springfield City Library, 220 State St. Legal support sessions run from noon to 4 p.m., and while attorneys may be able to accommodate walk-ins, registering for the event is strongly recommended.

The Small Business Expo runs from noon to 2 p.m.

For more information or to make reservations to meet with an attorney, visit bit.ly/BizGrowSpringfield2024, email BizGrow@lawyersforcivilrights.org or call the library at 413-263-6828.

Springfield offering community financial literacy opportunity

Books and Brew at White Lion meets quarterly and is a partnership between the library and Liberty Bank.

Read the full article at WWLP.com.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) – Books and Brews is the newest book club in town led by Liberty Bank and it’s guiding the community to financial wellness.East Forest Park celebrates National Night Out

The book club meets quarterly at the White Lion Brewing Company in Downtown Springfield. In partnership with Springfield City Library, members can access each month’s read by simply checking it out.

Tuesday’s quarterly meeting, providing insight and knowledge related to work, wealth, and leadership.

Books and Brews will meet next on December 10th from 5 pm to 6:30 pm at the White Lion Brewing Company in Downtown Springfield. To find out what book they’ll be reading next, visit here.