Monday, December 9, 2024
AZLE — On Saturday, Nov. 2, the Azle Memorial Library celebrated 15 years of serving the community with its biennial gala at the Orchard Event Venue. The event typically raises between $90,000 to $100,000 for the Azle Memorial Library. The library raised funds through a raffle, silent auction, live auction and a chance to buy a leaf on the library’s Heritage Oak. The theme for this year’s gala was “Wild About Reading.” Jane Rector was the gala’s biggest sponsor, with other individuals following.
Library staff, members of the Azle Library Trust board, members of the City of Azle library advisory board and others spoke in support of the library and encouraged donors to support the library financially in the programs and resources that it has offered to two million visitors since its opening.
Through funds raised at the event, the library can continue to provide performances, new books, electronic databases, study resources, arts and crafts programs and a wide variety of other benefits at no cost to the community.
In promotional material for the event, Azle Library Trust members wrote that AML has offered 214 programs with an attendance of 10,744 in the last 12 months alone, and that more than 250,000 physical and digital items have been checked out.
While the net funds raised during the event were not yet available by press deadline, gala chair and Azle Library Trust Chairman Debra Jenkins was thrilled with the outpour of community support.
“I can say it was a very successful event,” Jenkins said. “The trust will be able to fund the special programs for the library for the next two years, which is always our goal!”
