Today author Kate Messner shared heartbreaking photographs of Wells Memorial Library in New York, a small town library virtually destroyed by flooding from Hurricane Irene.
Her long post also explained how publishers, authors and readers can help this library rebuild its collection.
Here’s more from the site: “They lost virtually their entire children’s collection. All of the picture books. ‘They were all on the lower shelves,” library director Karen Rappaport explained, “so the kids could reach them.’ She looked at the heap of books in the yard, then out toward the river, quiet in the background today, and shook her head. ‘We’ve just never seen anything like this.’ She let us walk through the building to see just how devastating the flood waters had been. Old books and documents from the library’s special collections were spread out on tables to dry.”
You can send donations or books to this address:
Wells Memorial Library
12230 State Route 9N
Upper Jay, NY 12987
The post also offered this suggestion: “Donate a new, hardcover children’s book. Picture books are needed most. They were all destroyed except the five waiting to be re-shelved and those that were signed out to homes that didn’t get flooded. The Bookstore Plus, a terrific independent bookstore in nearby Lake Placid, NY, is helping to coordinate this effort … You can call The Bookstore Plus at (518) 523-2950, and a bookseller will help you choose a book to purchase, based on the library’s needs.” (Via Maureen Johnson)