Library hosts new grand opening of the new VOC branch

As published in the Sedona Red Rock News

We cordially invite you to join us for the ribbon cutting and grand opening of the new Sedona Public Library in the Village on Thursday, November 4, at 11 a.m. This first full day of business in the new library will be a fun celebration with refreshments, guest speakers, and music by Bill Barns. Your new library branch will be in Big Park Community School at 25 W. Saddlehorn Road, just off Verde Valley School Road.
 
We are thrilled that Dotte Vande Linde, the original manager of the Service Center in the Village, will cut the ribbon for this celebration. Sedona Public Library made its first appearance in the Village of Oak Creek nearly 20 years ago when residents placed a cardboard box for returning Library items at Weber’s IGA (now Clark’s Market). Local volunteers delivered the items to West Sedona, and eventually the first service center opened on West Cortez Drive in December of 2005.

“I never thought all those years ago when we were picking up the book returns at Weber’s that someday we could establish a branch library in the Village of Oak Creek. What wonderful news,” Dotte said.
As of November 4, Sedona Public Library in the Village will be open for eight additional hours and will provide a host of services never before available at the Service Center in the Village. Expanded services include a Children’s area with program space for popular programs like Storytime; three small meeting rooms with Wi-Fi; coffee; two furnished outdoor patio spaces; increased study and meeting space; comfy hang out space and furniture; a Friends of the Sedona Library book sale and used book drop-off location; weekly Notary Public Service; and weekly Tech Tuesdays.
 
Additional services will evolve and expand over time including the collection of adult and children’s items, more public computers, and more Chromebooks and hotspots for patron checkout. Programs for adults and children will include movies, lectures, book clubs, and AZ Humanities presentations to name a few. The current services like holds pick up and the tech station with charging tables, printer, fax, etc. will all, of course, also be available in the new space.
 
Speakers for the November 4 event include Dan Gallagher, President of the Board of Trustees of Sedona Public Library, Camille Cox, President of the Big Park Regional Coordinating Council; Corey Christians, Yavapai County Librarian, and David Keeber, Board President of the Friends of the Sedona Library. David was the Library Director when the first Village Service Center opened, and he’s excited about this expansion. “This is a fabulous opportunity for the entire community; and, looking forward, it means continued connections for all of Red Rock Country and the Verde Valley.”

Sedona Public Library is grateful to all the supporters who have provided funding for many years and who never lost hope in the possibility of a full branch library in the Village of Oak Creek.
We would also like to thank the many community members who have generously donated furnishings for the new location, and the Sedona Area Garden Club which has committed to taking care of the plants in this expanded library space.

This space is made available through an agreement with Sedona-Oak Creek Unified School District Governing Board who unanimously voted on a renewable annual lease for this space in Big Park Community School.
At the Governing Board’s discussion in August, it was noted by Barbara Trautwein that this was a “perfect use” for this space. Board President Randy Hawley said that they were “glad to work this out, it’s a great collaboration.” We couldn’t agree more.

In fact, Joanna Horton McPherson, Founder and Board Chair of the Sedona Village Foundation and the Sedona Village Learning Center, also located in the Big Park Community School, sees this move as an opportunity for early childhood literacy. “It is essential to have space for kids to have access to intergenerational learning. Our pre-K students will be able to participate in programs, meet authors, and work on their reading skills in new ways and in this open space that brings people together.”

This is one of several new initiatives at Sedona Public Library according to Judy Poe, Library Director, and she is excited for this important expansion. "We talked to the community about their needs, and we know this move is very important for community building in the Village of Oak Creek. One of the most important jobs for a library is to connect community, and this new branch will do exactly that."

Sedona Public Library is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization designated in 1964 to operate a public library in Sedona, and now we have two branches. We are supported by the City of Sedona, both Yavapai and Coconino Counties, the Friends of the Sedona Library, and hundreds of individuals throughout the region. We are excited to launch this expansion, and we look forward to working with the Village of Oak Creek and Big Park to support this important library initiative.
 
Sedona Public Library
Column for October 22, 2021
Written by Anne Marie Mackler
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