Annual Book Sale Assists Albany County Library

Each year, the doors and cash registers of the Albany County Public Library open for the "Big" Book Sale.

Though this year's sale ended October 29, the profits will be felt in the community throughout the coming year.

The Book Sale, held each year around the beginning of November, is the largest fundraiser put on by the Friends of the Library (FOL).  The FOL are a 501(c)3 organization dedicated to raising money and granting it to the library for miscellaneous projects.

Contents of the sale come from donations from the community and retired items from the library itself.  All retired and donated books are handled by volunteers who sort the items for sale, non-sale and recycling.  The organization and implementation of the sale itself is carried out with the help of almost 50 volunteers.

It is estimated that over 3,000 people shop at the yearly book sale, and in 2010, they raised more than $13,000.  Though that amount is only a small percentage of the total library budget, it makes up a large portion of the amount the FOL give to the library.

Money from the FOL allows the Albany County Public Library to:

• Send out regular newsletters
• Offer programs for teens
• Purchase Books, DVDs, CDs, Music, Games
• Train library staff
• Keep the library up to date with modern trends
• Purchase necessary office equipment

For more information on the book sale, the Friends of the Library, and the Albany County Public Library itself, go to the library's website, or listen to the Monday, November 14 edition of Laramie Live below.