On February 21, 2013 the Rochester Hills Public Library received a check for $204,818.34 from the estate of Mary & Lenore Cavanagh former residents of Rochester Hills. The gift is unrestricted.
“The Cavanaugh sisters valued the service the Library offers the community and wanted to make a major contribution to the work of the Library,” said Library Board President Robert Bonam. The money will be used to help refurbish the 1992 building.
“The Library Board recently approved the re-carpeting of the library,” reports public library director Christine Lind Hage. Once the new carpet is in place, possibly as early as this summer, the library will re-upholster furniture. “With over 2,000 visitors a day for over 20 years, the library’s floors and furniture really take a beating.” The Library purchased good quality commercial furniture back in 1992 so the tables and chairs will not be replaced, just refreshed.
“Over the years the Rochester Hills Public Library has received significant gifts at crucial times of need,” said Hage. Going back to:
- · 1950 when the $100,000 left by Eva Woodward Parker was used to build the first brick library at 210 West University.
- · Thanks to a gift from the Grace Curry Estate in, 1962 an addition was added to the library.
- · In 2005 the Alice Horter Estate gave the library $216,000, which was used to purchase a new computer system to check books in and out.
- In 2012 the Charles and Doris Edie estate gave the Library $100,000, which was used to purchase stock, staff and maintain an early literacy bookmobile for the library.
- · Now the Mary and Lenore Cavanagh Estate gift will help re-carpet the heavily used library.
Although 87% of the Library’s revenue comes from property taxes, the Library makes a concerted effort to raise money to help support its work. In addition to an annual fund-raising campaign, the Library provides information on its website (http://www.rhpl.org/donate-to-the-library) on how you can make more significant contributions.
“People chuckle when I say the Library provides ‘womb to tomb’ service to the residents of Rochester, Rochester Hills and Oakland Township, but it is true,” says Hage. “We are here for the 100,485 residents within the library’s service area, and through these major gifts we see that the residents truly see the value of what we do.”
The Rochester Hills Public Library is located in downtown Rochester off of University Drive and 3 blocks east of Main Street. The library is open from 9 – 9 Monday through Thursday and 9 – 6 on Fridays and Saturday and from 1 – 6 on Sundays. The library’s website (www.rhpl.org) has information on how to register for a card and access all of the library’s services.