Wondering how Sharon Davis and the rest of the Harrison County Library System is doing these days? We were, too. So we sent her a letter, and she wrote back. (That’s always a good sign.)

Hi! Good to hear from you! I just can’t tell you how much of a difference Dewey Donations made in our libraries. Your help came at a time when both the books and the emotional support were greatly needed.

Luckily, we do have progress to report. We’ve opened three temporary locations in trailers, provided by a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The trailers are in areas that are a good distance from the surviving libraries, allowing us to provide services to a wider range of the community. The grant not only covers the lease and set up of the trailers, but also contents, including a basic book collection, shelving and computers, and even partial funding for staff.

Blueprints have been drawn and funding secured for rebuilding the Biloxi and Pass Christian libraries. By the end of this year, we hope to have begun the early construction on both buildings. We’ve also acquired the land for a new Gulfport library and system headquarters, at a site much farther inland than the beachside building they formerly occupied.

Working with combinations of city governments, county government, FEMA/MEMA and insurance companies is quite a challenge, to say the least. The amount of paperwork is astounding, and navigating the rules and regulations of each agency we deal with takes a lot of patience and attention to detail. Our budgets are still scaled back considerably, but we’re able to operate almost normally. While progress is slow, we have great community support of our libraries and good cooperation from agencies involved in the rebuilding process.

For those of you who participated in our book drive, many, many thanks from all of us! For those considering donating to this year’s or any future drives, be assured that your contributions will have an emormous impact on the communities you are supporting. The Dewey system allows you to provide for the specific needs of those you’re giving to, so you know that what you’re sending is going to be put to good use. And it’s exciting thinking of the deep impact a single book can have, how the effects of that impact can spread throughout our world, and that you helped make it possible.

Hope that’s not too cheesy or wordy, my writing tends to sound either like textbook or like I’m talking to 1st graders. Let me know if you need anything else, and I’ll be buying a book in your new drive, and passing the word.

–Sharon

The Dewey Donation System is 100% Librarian Approved.