Our Busy Summer

An update on the building, our services, and our plans for the immediate future.

By Nancy Niggel, Executive Director

nniggel@ccls.org

We thought we’d be well into the repairs by the end of summer and keep you posted along the way. Unfortunately, things are not as easy or predictable as expected. For those who do not know, the library building has been closed to the public since February 17, when a large Sycamore tree fell against it and a branch came through the roof. Luckily, it happened before the library opened for the day, and no patrons were in the building. Fast forward to July 8, when a “Gustnado” swept through the Village of Historic Yellow Springs and again made tree branches fly. This time, the roof at the other end of the building was damaged, and rain made its way into the ceiling. There were puddles in the program room and the children’s area. Now we are facing an even bigger challenge.

The building housing Chester Springs Library is leased from Historic Yellow Springs. While the Library Board of Trustees and the Historic Yellow Springs Board of Directors continue working together to make repairs happen, the library staff were busy serving patrons every day during the spring and summer. From a base of operations at Henrietta Hankin Branch Library, we are available to help you with anything you would normally do at Chester Springs Library. Including placing holds, answering questions about your library account, showing you how to use Libby, and accessing the online databases. We are a phone call away at 610-827-9212, which we answer remotely and return promptly.

Programs also continued, including story times, music programs, play-dough mornings, and a nursery rhyme fair for young children. School-agers and teens enjoyed gardening workshops, science classes, holiday events, and game days. Adults continued to gather for crochet group, book group, and even a mosaic workshop. During the summer, we held a successful Summer Reading program for all ages and Science in the Summer for students entering grades two through six in the fall. Our seed library was also available, going mobile to reach more gardeners than ever before. A big thank you to our community partners who have worked with us to keep these programs going: Brandywine School of Early Learning, Coatesville Public Library, Henrietta Hankin Branch Library, Historic Yellow Springs, Pickering Valley Farm and Feed, Magic Memories Preschool, The Mill at Anselma, The Montgomery School, St. Matthew's Preschool & Kindergarten, Spring City Library, Uwchlan Garden Club, West Pikeland Township, and West Vincent Township.

Whew! We’ve been busy. Realizing repairs will now take longer due to the additional damage, and that the community would like to have Chester Springs Library completely available again, the Board of Trustees is busy looking for a temporary space for a home-away-from-home library. We are excited about this prospect and hope you are too. We’ll let you know as soon as we find something.

Thank you, everyone, for supporting our efforts and helping us continue our mission to serve the residents of the area by making readily available a variety of materials, resources, and programs to promote education, learning, and recreation.