Here's what West Orange residents have to say about the library!
“Our town has many things going for it. One of those things is our library and the many wonderful opportunities it provides for our community and children. Let’s keep moving in the right direction and fund it over the mandated minimum.”
"As a senior citizen, I love the library. Rosemary has saved my life - sending me books every week. Thank you."
"I come here from Hunterdon County to take advantage of a poetry workshop. I don't have anything like that where I live. Please restore funding! Thanks."
"The library hosts several activities for surrounding areas. Please continue to fund."
"I enjoy the convenient and flexible hours of this library."
"Our library is a valuable resource and an investment for our community. We must continue to support our library."
"This Library is the most important part of West Orange to me. The help I have received through the years taking out books is OUTSTANDING! they will help you with every problem you have. Keep the funding!"
"I am a handicapped member of the W.O. Public Library. I am so thankful for the delivery of books and the pleasant manner in which the staff is so obliging. Please do fund the library over the state mandated minimum level of funding. A most satisfied W.O. resident."
"The library to me is an institution of austere learning and tranquility. I've found myself quite drawn and attached to the environment as well as the benign customer statisfaction of the staff."
"I don't drive and the home delivery service is a godsend. I am also a senior citizen. Please help to keep the library operative."
"Libraries are important to all members of WO who need access to books education, computers (for job search). It is an institution basic to our health/education/community."
“I’m a single parent who is the only adult in my daughter’s life, besides her teacher, who reads with her. I don’t know what I would do without the library’s invaluable resources. Also we currently do not have a home computer so I appreciate my daughter and I being able to use one here. Lastly the library is a very inexpensive place I can take my child to enrich her life. Thank you.”
“Please we need the library as a foundation for a strong and healthy (educated) community.”
“My family and I enjoy this library and we would be lost if anything was changed.”
“Please do not cut the funding. I am an avid reader of books nonfiction, fiction, newspapers, magazines, and I love to look at movies too. Of course the computers are very important to me and to many other people who use them. I also go to meetings here and watch movies. Ps. In my humble opinion, the library (West Orange) and all libraries are essential places for a town and city. They are a meeting place in and center for learning.”
“I strongly support the library to stay like it is, because it represents our university.”
“Our library is the “star” of the town after our schools. Help us stay competitive.”
“Staff is stretched as it is – WOPL needs more staff not reductions.”
“I am in our library 5-6 days each week. I meet students and tutor them. I check out books and movies. Please increase the funding for our library.”
“I’m hoping that the brief address I made at Council Meeting will help reopen discussion of WOPL’s hard pressed circumstances and the inadequacy of the budget to help it. Thank you.”
“The WOPL is a place I can count on to provide educational and fun activities for my children. Books are invaluable and education is priceless. The WOPL is one of the BEST features of the town of W.O.”
“The West Orange Library is the closest library to my son’s school. In the six months since we moved to West Orange, we have visited the library regularly. We have participated in activities sponsored by the library (chess), in addition to constantly taking out books on cd and printed books. The West Orange community needs this valuable resource. Please do not cut funding.”
“The library is a regular part of our lives as West Orange residents, both for my husband and I, and our children.”
"The library provides valuable services to the community. It also provides space during the tax season for AARP to provide tax preparation services to the community. I am the AARP site coordinator for this site. In addition, the library provides computer services, many educational programs, and must be funded to be able to continue all these services."
“We need funding for new books.”
“I enjoy your books seriously.”
“The Library is very important to my family. We visit at least once weekly and have participated in various offerings. With the digital age quickly advancing the library is a staple and basic necessity that cannot be neglected!”
“You all must be joking. Go cut some other stupid program. At 12k per year in taxes I want my library.”
“The library must be funded. We need it to have enough staff and materials for this great town.”
“I will gladly pay extra in property taxes to support public library funding. If education is important in our schools, the library is equally important to support those same schools and students!”
“Public libraries in general are the pillar of knowledge. Please don’t put that in jeopardy.”
“The library is wonderful! Please keep it going strong –“
“So many of our children today lack social skills due to computer technology. The library is a great place for children to develop these skills by interacting with others.”
“Please keep this library alive and running, people like Dave and Faith are always polite, very helpful friendly, just as are all other works. I enjoy this library more than Orange. More books and other materials.”
“I come to the Library nearly every week, as my parents did before me. I am always impressed by the strength and range of the collections in all formats, and the professionalism and helpfulness of the staff. I love to see so many patrons –browsing, bringing children, doing homework, researching online, reading newspapers and magazines, and more. The library is central and crucial to the quality of West Orange as a place to live. I always worked in NYC (as did my father) but I found a superb/and complete library here in West Orange.”
“I support increased funding to the library. It is providing an indispensable service to children, teenagers, and adults. Lay off employees or reducing its hours would be a major setback to all those who use this library.”
“The Library is my escape. I can relax, concentrate.”
“Please keep this excellent facility at top level?? It’s one of the best features in West Orange.”
“I am a preschool teacher at Valley Settlement House in West Orange. I have found the W.O. library and the interlibrary loans very valuable for bringing books (story and factual) to the children on a weekly basis. I would be at an extreme loss w/out the W.O. Library.”
“Libraries matter to develop young minds.”
“Love the library. Keep it going strong!”
“The West Orange Library is a source of reference, novels (current) and tapes, magazines, computers, and most of all the wonderful staff that are always ready and willing to help one when searching for information of any kind. We the public needs our libraries.”
“The Library has always been like a second home to me.”
“I can’t imagine my life without books and the W.O. library is my source.”
“My family loves this library and it has wonderful programs for children.”
“I visit the library weekly and with the books and assorted presentations the library is vital to our growing community.”
“It is very popular. Always busy. Great hours. I need it for my grandson’s reading enthusiasm.”
“The library needs support. Please keep the library going as it has in the past. The community needs this library.
“As the mom of twin toddler girls, the Children’s Storytime program has become a weekly staple in our schedule for the past year and a half. Every week, our girls love to see Ms. Faith and spend time in the Children’s room. In the midst of many improvements the Mayor and Council have spearheaded in West Orange, which have been amazing – it is also vital for a community to have at its heart a well maintained library. I personally belive it is a piece of what attracts and then retains families in any town. This library is the 1st place that many families with young children meet each other and begin to feel, yes, this is a place where we’d like to stay and raise our kids. Please protect this incredible American institution. It’s about more than “just books.”
“Large potholes in the parking lot constitute a grave danger to library patrons. It would be disastrous to reduce books, lay off employees, and reduce hours. Our property taxes are exorbitant, and we need a library to make us proud!
“I’ve lived in W.O. and have used this outstanding library for years. It is an asset to this community and much needed.”
“Books are so important –as are the people who work in our library.”
“Please fund the library. WOPL is a great place – they have really good books, they get the most interesting new works that come out. I could never afford to buy 1/10th of what I borrow from WOPL – and the people that work here are so good.”
“I have used the WOPL since I moved to WO in 1985, I have seen many changes over the years. I feel it is one of the best institutions in West Orange and provides many services which are desperately needed. It would be a mistake to cut employees, services, or hours.”
“I am a volunteer at the library. I love working at the library. I have made friends at the library. I love the work that I do. I live at Canterbury Village and can get out and do something different and accomplish things. There are resources that I can enjoy myself. 1. I help Faith a lot. 2. I put book carts in alphabetical order; I fold activity leaflets; I make name tags for the children, I do arts and crafts, and other things too. 3. I make beautiful friendships. 4. I’m able to get out of Canterbury Village for 2 hours. 5. I keep busy. 6. I get a feeling of accomplishment. 7. I read some books from the library. 8. I put book carts in numerical order. 9. It gives me something different to do instead of just being at home. 10. At the end of the day, I know I’ve done something good. 11. I love the work that I do.”
“The health of a town has several key indicators; the status of the public library is one of them. The broad services provided are irreplaceable. To defund the library would be a real blow to West Orange.”
“This is the only place that some senior citizens have to go. The people here are very helpful.”
“Please make sure we have the resources so that all of our kids and families can have access to information that is important in our lives. Even with a kindle and kindle unlimited I find I use the library more than ever.”
The West Orange Library has been an integral part of living in the community. It would be a tremendous loss if it was impacted by financial cuts.”
“No, I would like to come.” (In reference to additional comments and the Council Meeting 3/8/16.)
“My former husband’s family moved to West Orange in 1948. I moved here in 1972. We have always enjoyed the library. The people that work here are kind, thoughtful, and always helpful. Please do not let us down.”
“Overall good place if I had the money I would expand it even throw in a café.”
“We regularly visit the library for my kids’ school research that really helps them to work for their assignments for their school.”
“Keep the library open. Do not cut power. Thank you.”
“Please keep the library healthy! Our children love it there and it's helping foster a love of reading in them. Plus it's an important symbol of the quality of a town. Thank you!!”
“The West Orange Library has been part of our lives since we moved to WO from Brooklyn over 10 years ago. Over the years we have enjoyed the many many tremendous programs that the library has to offer for all ages. The staff is always helpful and warm and quite honestly, it feels like family when we walk though the doors. I wholeheartedly stand behind any and all efforts to support this local treasure.”
“The library has been such an asset to my family - both before I had kids and since. We visit the library almost weekly. It is vital to our town. The staff are so helpful and friendly, the resources and programming are important and what makes this town great. Please do whatever necessary to keep this institution alive in our town.”
"Please keep the library healthy! Our children love it there and it's helping foster a love of reading in them. Plus it's an important symbol of the quality of a town. Thank you!!"
"Ever since I was little, I used to go to the West Orange Public Library and read book after book. Reading (and the access that the library gave me to new books) has greatly shaped who I am today. The programs at the library have exposed me to all kinds of new things, and have allowed me to meet great people. Our town NEEDS a well-funded library for our residents (especially our students)."
"WOPL is an educational gem and essential to fostering the development of early readers. Pls. fund it fully."
"The West Orange Public Library was the place that my kids picked out their first books, where they had some of their first conversations about books with the wonderful staff, and where we all continue to explore the world that books bring to us. The services that WOPL provides this town make our lives in West Orange richer. I want the next generation to have the same library we love."
"Every time I visit the library I see the services being used by members of our town-- school children, the elderly, and everyone in between. We moved to this town because of what it provides to its citizens. A public library is a vital social institution in any town. I'm a proud WOPL card carrying member!"
"The library has been instrumental in teaching my children great reading and study habits"
"I take my 2 and 5 year old to the library on a regular basis to get book, DVDs and participate in the activities offered for them. The absolutely love going and I and happy to take them"
"I'm concerned with the wall that collapsed. It seems unfinished and unsafe. Please fix this so I can start enjoying the library again!"
"The WOPL is our Main St. It's where old ideas find comfort, and new ideas find vitality."
"The West Orange Library provides a valuable array of services to our community, young and old, students and learners of all ages. Please allow this library to continue the valuable work it does for our community."
“Please fix our library! It's a disgrace to leave it in that condition. A town's most important asset to learning and access to education must present a good face to the world!”
“The library provides a wealth of services and is a valuable and necessary part of the township.”
“My family and I frequent the library monthly. When we first moved into town, it was one of the first places we visited. My oldest w beginning to read and my youngest was attending baby story hour. They get excited to go to the library and their worlds are constantly being expanded there. The staff is amazing. Miss Faith has recommended on target books for my emergent reader numerous times and he is now reading on his own. I don't know if his love of reading would be this strong without access and repeated visits to the library.”
“This library is an asset to our community!”
"The library is a valuable resource for West Orange residents who are looking for jobs and access the Internet, for students who need to do homework, for families that are encouraging their children to read, and for the community to get together. It is more to this community than the "minimum" requirement set forth in the state funding guidelines, and therefore deserves the added support of the West Orange Town Council and May in the form of additional funding. Thank you."
"The library provides a wealth of services and is a valuable and necessary part of the township."
"The library has been such an asset to my family - both before I had kids and since. We visit the library almost weekly. It is vital to our town. The staff are so helpful and friendly, the resources and programming are important and what makes this town great. Please do whatever necessary to keep this institution alive in our town."
"The West Orange Library has been part of our lives since we moved to WO from Brooklyn over 10 years ago. Over the years we have enjoyed the many many tremendous programs that the library has to offer for all ages. The staff is always helpful and warm and quite honestly, it feels like family when we walk though the doors. I wholeheartedly stand behind any and all efforts to support this local treasure."
“Our family has had many enriching experiences there. From the many family activities the library hosts, like concerts and the chess tournaments, to simply help finding the right book or resource for a school project. The staff there is always helpful. I can't imagine our lives without an adequately funded West Orange Library”
“My kids attend monthly book club events, I take out 20 books at a time (and usually return almost all of them!) I took my youngest child to story time and we participate in the summer reading program every year. The library is a fantastic resource, please give them all the money you can!!!”
“The West Orange Library kept my imagination fed with great books throughout my childhood, and helps me continue to education myself in adulthood. Please preserve this resource for West Orange's current young minds!”
“Even quiet zones in the library are a share experiece that our kids won't get online. I took my therapy dog to libraries so kids could read to him - it is a wonderful and growing experience to help children read without being judged! Books are where our history lives. Don't kill the home where our history resides”
”West Orange Library was a great resource for home work for my children, a great resource for books for me. Please fund the library properly so it can function as it should. It is one of the places that makes West Orange a desirable community.”
“The WO library is one of the first places I visited when I moved into the neighborhood. It's where I go to borrow audiobooks to listen to on long car trips, and where my 3 year old daughter borrowed her first book. Additionally - it would be such a sad footnote to”
“My kids and I were at the library every week this past summer and it was always busy. During the school year, I'm still constantly there as the resources are incredibly useful both personally and professionally. It is a significant part of the community.”
” We should not jeopardize a great resource for our kids”
“The library is an important asset to the entire WO community. It is especially important to those who need the library's resources and are enriched by its programs.”
“The WO Library is an institution I have enjoyed my entire life. From the time of the 'BookMobile' to today, the library has brought the world, real and imagined to my home.”
”The public library is probably the single most important asset supported by taxes. It provides books, videos, computer access, research aid to all residents, regardless of economic status, race, culture or educational level. It shows the town's commitment to literacy for both children and adults. Our library, as good or better than many of the surrounding community libraries, is invaluable to the residents of West Orange. Like the public school system, a quality municipal library can enhance property values. That said, improving the library services would be the best investment West Orange can make for its future.”
” As someone who grew up loving to read, the library has a special place in my heart”
“My son grew up going to the WO library every week to get a whole bag full of new books - always a highlight of the week!”
“A good library with adequate resources is essential for any community.”
“I take my two children to the library almost weekly. My son, who is 8, uses it for his school projects and to answer his burning questions about Megladons and black holes and all the other random things that fascinate him. My daughter, who is 5, has an insatiable need for picture books. And me? I'm a bookworm! We cannot afford to buy all these books, nor do we want to. The library is a wonderful place where we learn and are reminded that learning is a gift we can borrow and give back so others can read the same materials next. Reading is about community and it's all there at the library. I would gladly pay more in taxes to keep our library whole. Please, let's find the money to fund it.”
“I use the library regularly throughout the year, and my kids go all summer when they are home from college. We attended story time back when Miss Linda ran it- a great town needs and deserves a great library.”
“I love the West Orange Public Library. I am there at least weekly. For me and my children, it is a regular and favorite part of living in West Orange. The staff is extremely helpful and the services are essential. It would be a huge loss to ourselves and West Orange if services are cut further. I'm still missing the early opening that has already been cut, as I regularly would drop my kids at school and head straight to the library. It's a great resource for my personal reading pleasure as well as for items I use for work. If anything, the services and funding for the library should be increased, not decreased, so that it can be used more and more as a community center for our children and teens as well as adults, a destination for friends to meet up where we know they'll be safe.”
” West Orange is an extraordinarily diverse town. The library is the one institution that is able to help all citizens. The people that will be hurt the most by these cuts are the ones that need it the most. The library is such a crucial part of any solid, thriving town.”
"As I don't drive and only get around with town transportation. I rely on the library. They have a program with home delivery and pick up and this is a great help to me, as I am an avid reader. So I would really miss it, if this would be one of the cuts. Please help the Library. We helped you in your elections. So again, I ask you to please help the library."
"I'm a volunteer in the Literacy Volunteers of America Program since May 2014. I am currenly working with a woman since the fall of 2014, turtoring her in reading, writing and spelling. She's a working mother with five children and is dedicated to this program. I am a retired reading teacher from Huntington, Long Island. I know how important the library is to the community."
"Please help West Orange library, the staff are wonderful and the library circulation items are educational and entertaining."
"The Library is the cultural life of any society, it is what makes life meaningful without a good functioning library, we might as well go back to the dark ages where ignorance was not minded."
"It is necessary to have the library. Library have all information tools that people can look. Research. Please keep the library in our town West Orange. Thank you."
"Me and my son enjoy the library and usually borrow many books and movies. This place is essential for our integration in the wonderful community of West Orange."
"The Public Library is one of the biggest assets of the town. Please, let us have it and be as lively and full of educational value as it can be."
"Y I supportive member of the library. Support the services given to myself and my family. The services provided will enrich my children educational needs and provide them assistance for the future. The library is needed to help everyone in the community."
"I do utilize the resources at the West Orange Public Library seven days a week, to mostly use the computer, printer, and copier, when needed and I know every library is a great resource for educational learnings for all ages and a needed resources to check out educational books and etc."
"The West Orange Library is a place where the town of West Orange can share knowledge and culture. Its value to family and residents is vital to the city's well being. Please fund the library so it can continue to nurture and help us grow in so many ways."
"My three young children are avid readers and love to frequent the library. Please fund the library so that they can continue to look forward to our visits. Thank you!"
"We need our library fully staffed with all services intact. It's part of the reason that WO is so great!"
"As an educator, I understand and strongly support the library."
"The library provides a place to escape using books.It gives students who do not have internet/compters a place to study and do homework."
"It has a lot of materials we need. When your computer is down you can come here. It's quiet and all around nice library to be in."
"Although there are many pressing matters facing the township, it would be a terrible blow to the heart of West Orange if the library were to be diminished in any way. This library has served so many faithfully over the years. It deserves to continue to serve for many more!"
"As an avid reader the library is an important resource in my life and I consider it a second home. It is the perfect place to do homework and over the years the library and all its books have brought such joy and serenity to my life."
"The library gives me a place to not only enjoy my favorit books, but it also gives me a place to study. The library is like a safe haven for some people and it's very important to this community. It provides a myriad of books on anything and everything. I love this library."
"I have been to other libraries; the West Orange library has the best staff. They are helpful and have made me feel at home since we moved here in 2013. It's our family's favorit place in West Orange. It needs more money to continue their programs."
"We need our library! It is vitally important to our community. If anything, funding should increase for it, not decrease."
"The West Orange Library provides a valuable array of services to our community, young and old, students and learners of all ages. Please allow this library to continue the valuable work it does for our community."
"The West Orange library is an equal opportunity provider of knowledge. Please keep it that way; for the children, if not for the rest of us."
"Love the library."
"West Orange has a truly excellent library - great collection, interesting programming, warm and knowledgeable staff. It's heavily used and an important community resource. It's also a big plus that WOPL has joined its regional consortium and we now have access to a tremendous resources both print and digital. Our family relies on the library! Please increase, not decrease, its support from the town, state and grants."
"Having a well funded library reflects a town which believes in providing education and knowledge to its citizens. It is a great investment for the citizenship of the town and home values."
"I have always been at the library for reference help and activities they have out for me. I always went to the library and I would meet both of my friends and started on homework. If we get cuts most of the things that we enjoy won't be there."
"The library is a quintessential part of the community and teen life if the buget gets cut the teen life in the whole town. The library is where teen's come for all the resources they need."
"What is going on!? Why is there even a discussion about the Library. I am sure that the people of our community would want a Library! There shouldn't be any discussion about this! Please come to you senses. Thank you."
"Please refund the library. It is one of West Orange's "gems." I am a faithful and frequent patron."
"I love the library. The staff is so nice and helpful. I love getting DVDs to enjoy at home. I really enjoy the Library. I like when they show movies and have poetry workshops."
"I am an avid reader and would never be able to afford all the books I have read over the 38 years I have lived in town! Please find a way to fund the library over the state minimum!!"
"I would be lost without the services the West Orange library provides."
"The WO Library is vital to the comunity...for the young people to help with special resarch items, to the seniors which utilize the facilities to stay informed in touch, to returning students who like to use the library for homework, those seeking seeking employment for the employment service tools to help with gaining a job/career."
"The library is within walking distance from my home. Very necessary for my elderly dad to get there. As well as a vital resource for up to date reading material, computer resources, etc."
"Save our children!"
"I first moved to West Orange five years ago. I was very shy. I spent most of my time reading. Then I descovered the book club offered at the library. There I discovered others just like me who loved to read. Through that book club, I was able to come out of my shell and interact with other kids. Without the WOPL, I would not be the confident person I am today."
"I love the library and I believe that it should get the funds it needs to continue as is. It has been doing a lot for the community by educating the youth and being a welcoming place of information for everyone. The library should be allowed to continue doing these things with the right amount of funds."
"The library is a very fun place that I can meet new people and use as a resource to help with my studies."
"The library is much much more than just a brick building filled with books. The library is a place to lose ones self, for a community to come together, and to let imaginations run through the halls and rooms. The library is a world of its own full of the world's information. it's a place for the less fortunate to access much information through the computer, newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, etc. etc. etc. For me, the library is 52 years of my history, my art work lined the walls, I was ask to speak to a group of people regarding flowers and arranging flowers. it's where I went to a circus not that long ago with my newphews and again much much more."
"The library is one of the town's most important resources. I support full funding!"
"We are trying to educate our children and provide a place for them to do home work and research. To reduce funding is a crime. Better to increase funding and further educate."
"The West Orange Library is instrumental to the welfare and success of our community. The library is an important resource for our children and it must be funded as much as possible."
"The library is so important in helping to create a sense of community in our town. It has been so important to me and my family in the 50+ years we have lived in West Orange. I visit the library very frequently and have utmost respect for the staff. They are dedicated professionals who seek to answer every question respectfully. Please do not reduce funding for the library!!"
"Our library is a vital part of continuing education for young and old. It is essential in broadening our outlook and nourishing the soul. Please help us and our library to grow and flourish. Thank you."
"This most useful resource this city has should continue to provide a service to those of us who enjoy literature and information."
"The library is a vital part of our community - heavily used by all. Please continue to support it as much as possible."
"I am in favor of maintaining the same level of services at the library that are presently in place. Our library is an asset and our citizens do not deserve a minimum level of funding. Please help the library as it is."
"Libraries are an important community resource and one that I am grateful to make use of. Having just moved to the area, it was important to me to have a robust library system to frequent. I hope that funding for this important resource is approved and increased."
"Necessary for students and families. Free."
"Friendly staff. Good, quiet environment. Important for town and students. Great access."
"The West Orange community needs the library to provide and continue to meet the people's expectation. West Orange residents pay one of the highest real estate taxes in Essex County. We expect nothing but the best for our community. Pls don't let us down!"
"The WO Public Library is an integral part of our community. Providing increasing services that benefits all the residents of West Orange."
"It is so nice to seekids hanging around in the library reading, doing their homework or talking to their teachers and/or mentors. If services are cut down due to decrease funding these kids may end up in the streets. I'd rather support funding the library rather than crime protection services; with kids increaded learning, we lessen crime caused by youth."
"Please do not take away this library. This is one good resource for our children."
"Vital part of community."
"Again, with the state mandated minimun level of funding, the library is sorely underfunded as it faces increased costs. We need your support . Please fund our library above the state mandated minimum! Ensure that it is a high quality resource for all of our West Orange residents - young and old. We rely on this institution."
"Public libraries are vital to all communities."
"I love the library! I have gone there my whole life and it is my sanctuary. The staff is exceptional. I can't imagine not being able to go there. Please keep it going!"
"I have lived in West Orange since seven years old. Been here over 21 years. The library has always been useful. Libraries are usually useful. It helps the community."
"They bring a wonderful amount of service and knowledge when we are looking for certain books or need essential help on the computer. It's a lavish atmosphere of true peace and quiet. Also the hours of operation are outstanding and perfect in my schedule. Please don't take this library away. It's the only one the close wo where I live locally, don't want to travel so far just to get my work done."
"It would be a sad day if our library would change. We deserve a stable and supported library. Please fund our library! It is a plus to being a citizen of W.O."
"Library is one of West Orange's treasures. Please support it!"
"The library is the best thing about living in West Orange and makesme content with the high property taxes."
"I am a resident of West Orange for three years and with an 18 month old I know how important having a space for children to learn abou tthe fun of reading. The library is the community!"
"Please continue to fund this wonderful library which is just abou tthe best thing in W.O."
"The library is one of our greates educational resources. Please do not let its services be diminished."
"My family uses the library constantly. From book clubs to check out many books to the summer reading program - we use all the resources they offer. Please give more funding!!"
"I am a frequent user of our library and have always been pleased and impressed with every aspect for the past 30 years. Please do all that is possible to maintain its high level."
"I am a new resident of West Orange and an active user of the library. Library programs are an excellent way to be involved in the community. The benefit of the BCCLS system is something I greatly appreciate since it enables me to read any book I choose."
"The library is a critical and key staple in the community. Funding to sustain the institution is imperative."
"The library is a vital part of West Orange. I've counted on it all the years I have lived here -well over 50 years."
"I don't know what I would do without the library!"
"I love and use the library regularly. Also I couldn't live in a town without a vibrant, active library. Having bought a house here 18 months ago, I use the library to study and read and most importantly to borrow current and historical books."
"I have used the library for a number of educational and musical programs throughout the years. I also use the various forms of research as a genealogist and providing information to others performing resarch on the internet free of change."
"Your library is great!!!"
"The library is one of the most important public services in West Orange. Please support it to the fullest extent possible. Our citizens need this resource."
"I am very disappointed in the town of W.O. After living here for many years and using the library for myself and children, I see the town no longer puts much effort into this important institution. Don't we pay enough taxes?"
"When I first moved to West Orange, one of the first things I did was obtain a library card. I am so glad I did. The library is an amazing resource for all of West Orange's residents, including my six month old daughter. It would be a real shame if it does not receive the funding it deserves."
"I don't know where I would be without our library. When I was a kid, I escaped to the Orange Public library and it was a wonderful place for me. Living in WO for the past ten years I have always patronized the library.It is a vital part of our community."
"I been coming to this library since 2008."
"This is one of the most important facilities in the town of West Orange. Please enconomize somewhere else. This cut will affect the old and the young, the rich and the poor. DON'T! Think about it."
"I love the library and use it extensively."
"The library is my happy place, we need it."
"We need this library open and accessible!"
"I am very happy with the staff, espcially Dave and Faith. Everyone else is great they have wonderful books and other services they are great help very helpful and friendly. Very happy!"
"The library is a part of the community and any attempt to limiting the level of funding will have an enmormous impact on our community. I hope the state and the Govenor will understand teh bond between the people and the hosue of knowlege!"
"Please continue to fund the evening hours on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I work as a volunteer all three "late hour" days and I can attest to the fact that amny patrons use the library during these hours."
"The library is one institution that serves people of all ages and economic backgrounds who enjoy culture and the arts. It is essential that it is funded properly so that the best of human thought and creation is available to all."
"I am very grateful for this library which provides me books to read with great pleasure!!!"
"My family and I regularly utilize the library and its services."
"The library needs this to stay functional and a place where our youth can benefit from."
"I grew up in W Orange -moved away in 1970, returned in 2005. The town has obviously changed for in most cases the worst taxes ridiculous - so high as a retiree in the future I will need to leave. The only thing that makes the taxes worth it in my mind is the library. Great books. A peaceful place to learn. I lvoe seeing children and adults of all ethnicities using the library, showing respect for the written word. I see students being tutored. I see underprivileged folks using the computers, reading newspapers, staying safe and warm.The staff is pleasant, helpful, fantastic. Cut expenditures elsewhere and maintain the most valuable gem of West Orange please!"
"As a teacher I know the value of a free public library - it's unlimited! And as a parent, I can't say enough about how great it is to have a resource for books and movies for my daughter. And as a reader - a library is a great use of my tax money."
"-Great library with extensive resources. - staff is extremely helfpul.- BCCLS is a wonderful addition ot the library assets."
"The West Orange library is a very important part of our family's weekend routine. The services that are provided are essential and must be properly funded."
"The WOPL has provided invaluable services both to me and my entire family for many years. We have all enjoyed children's programs, author and other discussion groups as well as courteous and helpful advice and suggestions from its staff. I have been a life long WO resident so I speak from almost 70 years experience in utilizing library resources. I cannot semphasize enough how important this wonderful facility is to our town having personally benefitted from childhood to senior citizen status."
"My ESL students at the high school use this lirbary for MANY activities and resources. Please do not cut funds!"
"I am an active student who uses the library a lot and I would not like it if they cancel part of their funds."
"I lvoe the library staff!!!"
"I have been a library user for most of my life. Born in 1942 and raised in West Orange - that's a lot of years! Please consider additonal funding for this very fine institution."
"I couldn't imagine not living in this town and not having a library. Since the library changed in May I believe that it has increase my ability to take out more books and items. I truly enjoy this library and have had really great memories here."
"Ive been a member of the library since I moved to West Orange 12 years aog. Every time I'm here (at least once per month) I see families reading together, people researching and learning new skills, as well as a community coming together. Please keep the funding!!"
"Please leave the library as is. West Orange has lost a lot of palces and closed many doors. The residents need the library. The children need to have a place to get and help with their education. The staff is absolutely great, always helpful and kind. Don't close and take this away from us too. I mayself need the library. It's there for everyone young and old no matter it situation, it's open for many people."
"Reading is a wonderful remedy for someone who is feeling very ill."
"The library is very important for learning and for fun, for adults and for children."
"We use the library almost every weekend. It would be a shame to limit access to the library by cutting staff and hours."
"Please provide the necessary funding for this value asset to our community. I use it only a regular basis. As a taxpayer in West Orange I would like to see my tax money utilized to keep the library providing the great services that it provides."
"I found the library to be responsive and very helpful to me. It's actually one of the few benefits of living in West Orange that I could name."
"Libraries are essential to the advancement of our culture. Keep up- or increase- current funding."
"As an educator, I find the resources provided by West Orange Public Library for local students, teachers, and the general public are increadibly valuable. Please do everything in your power to ensure our community retains access to the wonderful programming and information AND STAFF provided by this library. Thank you."
"Please keep the library open with the current hours. The library provides a place to residents to study, have access for information for learning and grwoth. The library provides a place for family to go on the weekends to read books and do activities. We cant lose the hours or staff."
"The library/Media Center has become a vital institution for most computer access for the poorer members of the community."
"The library is a resource essential to the growth and improvement of the town. We cannot aford to suffer cutbacks to essential services that benefit the young student all the way to the senior citizens who are faithful utilizers of the wealth of knowedge and programs made available there."
"The West Orange lirbary is very important to the community, the shcool district and the overall future of this town. The budget should reflect the quality of service we deserve as tax payers."
"The library is an example of a strong community, which is what I am proud of in West Orange. The programming and services provided by the library is crucial to sustain the close-knit feeling of our community. It keeps people involved, which in turn keeps people in volvedi n town. Please secure the future of this vital institution."
"We just moved to W.O. and the library has been a great asset and opportunity to meet other families. We love story time with Miss Faith."
"The West Orange Public Library is where I go to learn, study, and social through the events the library provides. If the library is not funded enough to maintain it's service. It would reduce the amount of people that come to the library."
"This library is a gem, and it is so important that funding be continued at its present level."
"West Orange Library was already downsized. This library is essential to not only to residents with children, but to allmembers of the family. Downsizing it again is just not a good move and idea."
"This library is a godsend for all the services they provide from computer access, books, dvds, magazine, wi-fi. All these services are vital to support the community and patrons who avail themselves of the resources."
"The library meant so much to me when i was a kid, and it means so much to me now."
"We love the library. The programming for kids is fantastic and wide-ranging. The books provide weekly escapes for every member of our family, young and old. The staff is always friendly and helpful. WOPL is a focal point of our community that needs to be supported and celebrated!"
"I have a masters degree and my spouse a doctorate. We both used the West Orange Library in may ways when we were in school. The librarians are very knowledgeable and the resources at the library are amazing. They are not asleep at the wheel. They really are on top of what is needed."
"Libraries are such an important part of the community. I have taken my children to the storytime at West Orange library where they learn to socialize and a love of reading. My children love to take books out of the library - it teaches respect for books, sharing and a love of reading. The library already cut its hours back a few years ago - please do not cut the hours again."
"My family has been going to our town library for more than 40 years. It has been a great resource for my kids as students, and now for all of us as adults. We need to preserve the library. Books are still important and irreplaceable"
"i very much appreciate the help we have received from the reference librarian and from the children's room librarian. The librarians at the checkout desk have also always been helpful and pleasant."
"We've been told that our family was among the top ten users of the library. I think our library is wonderful. One of my only regrets about where I live is that I am not within walking distance of the library. A good library is essential for protecting property values; accordingly, it is essential to fund the library at an appropriate (HIGHER) level."
"A library says volumes about a community. What would Benjamin Franklin say if he came to an underfunded West Orange library? Council Members and Mayor Parisi, if you do not understand the reference to Mr. Franklin, perhaps you should go to the West Orange library to research it while you still can."
"I am there every week - it is a resource, a refuge and a recharge. Please do not cut anything."
"Our library does not measure up to other towns nearby. It needs to be improved"
"It is frightening that there is even a question about committing all of the funds needed to maintain and improve the library. I have always used a public library from growing up in Newark and Union and during the 35 years we have lived in West Orange. During all of those experiences I never heard a local government question committing necessary funds. My children used the library as students and were well-served in their colleges and graduate school experiences by the introductions to literature that came from our library. Don't allow West Orange become a second rate town by diminishing the services that our library offers."
"We just moved to West Orange and I don't know why anyone would move their family into a town without a library. It is a MUST for any family. Please do not devalue something so essential. Please help."
"The library is a huge part of our family's life, especially the children's room. Please add funding, not diminish."
"The library is a. Vital part of the west orange"
"I have mobility issues and vision problems. I need the library's audiobook collection and their membership in larger library group online download sites to be able to access books. It is a lifeline for me and I am sure many others in town. When I was able to go to the library it was always filled with young people working on homework and projects, many using the computers. Those computers, the physical,books and most of all the librarians there to help are an important part of our town's excellent education program.libraries are a core part of our American life, for every generation."
"I have been to neighboring libraries, and the West Orange Public Library has the best staff from my experience; they're friendly, helpful and courteous. It's probably my favorite place in town; a resource for my business and programs for my young children. The librarians have encouraged their love of reading and learning through story times and book recommendations. I don’t know if I can stress enough how important that is for their education."
"The library wall needs repair and it needs to remain a strong part of the community. Please support funding and maintenance of the library."
"My family uses the WO public a lot. We check out books, do research, check out movies and just use the space to work sometimes. It is a valuable space for my family and for our community. One often sees people reading the newspaper, using the computers, working. The community uses the public space in their everyday lives. Any loss of the use of this space would be sorely missed. WO already has so little to offer downtown, and now this would be limited? Such a shame. Not a good choice when trying to build community!"
"My kids love going to the WO library and borrowing books. We're there several times a month -- sometimes twice in a week. Please don't let the funding levels decrease!"
"The library is a community center providing books, CDs, DVDs, and audiobooks to patrons of all ages. The databases are invaluable for research whether it is decide what to read next, to research and write a papera paper, or to decide what appliance to buy next. More funding is needed to support the purchase of materials, to sponsor quality programs, and to support the wages of dedicated library staff members. Librarians are responsible for purchasing materials that the community wants, holding programs for the community and learning databases so that they can educate the public. The staff deserves to be commended for working with the minimum budget allowed by statute. To have a library that a community can be proud of requires more than the statutory minimum these days."
"As avid readers, the town library has played a big role in my family's lives. They always have a great selection of children, young adult and adult books, as well as a great selection of DVD's. The staff is friendly and helpful. The library is a vital part of our community. It serves everyone who needs a quiet space to work or use the wifi. It allows those who do not have the Internet a safe place to do so. The children's programs are a great place for parents and caregivers to go at no cost. I would hope that you would finds the funds to keep this library functioning to meet the increasing needs of the residents of West Orange."
"I use the library every week and its important to me as a grad student and citizen."
"Our daughter came up with the idea of creating her own Library in her bedroom where she can be the Librarian. We told her what is going on with the Library and she offered herself to go to help the Librarians!!! Please, consider additional funding for our Library, it is a valuable and necessary part of West Orange."
"It is so important to me in the community."
"Our library provides services across all age groups - it is a leveler of economics! Where else can a child expand their horizons with the same resources? Can a seinior find mind expanding programs without cost! My children have fond memories of summer reading programs. It would be unconscionable to deprive future generations of them."
"I use the library weekly."
"Keep our library strong. Montclair and Livingston have invested a lot and it shows!"
"We need our libraries and all the programs offered."
"We have an excellent library with fantastic resources which need to continue. We are a much bigger town than S.O. and Livingston. We deserve a grant or whatever to keep us AFLOAT."
"Libraries are a must for any town!!"
"Libraries have always been important to our family."
"Libraries are essential for a town."
"Education is the future of any nation. If you stop funding a library, it is clear that your plan is to dumb down the population. Fund the library, we voted you for that you owe us that."
"The internet is Costco. The Library is Nieman Marcus. Thank you."
"I think that libraries are the best use of my tax dollars."
"I have used the Livingston and Short Hills library also. This is the best one!! Please provide the funding that will allow for continuous wonderful service. Thanks."
"A library is part of a community. A community cannot function without a library. A library represents education, represents knowledge, a place where all adults and children can appreciate culture, in terms of books, DVD, computer, art in all senses. A community is not a community without a library! I am a Rutgers Biomedical and Health Science Public Health Research Institute employee and a West Orange resident since 2012. My son goes to the West Orange Public Library every week with my mother, also a West Orange resident. I hope my son can grow inside a public library, the West Orange Public Library."
"My son and his grandmother get significant and meaningful benefit from the library. Akira has his own library card and frequently takes out movies and books. Most importantly he's developing proper protocol and socialization skills from frequenting and using the library. It is a TREMENDOUS community resource!"
"As a West Orange resident for over 83 years (time out for military service), I think it's a shame to underfund the library. Cut some of those appointments, that really add nothing to the township."
"I am a West Orange resident and a voracious reader, since as a child. Being from not a well to do family, but highly educated parents, I have been going to library since I was a child. And I still do that. I am in the profession of assisting big industries making right decision, and I could have never done that without reading. Any library is an integral part of growth of a human being, which makes communities. This library and their employees are just awesome. Everything should be done to make sure the library fund is not cut and this still remains part of our life."
"My son has special needs and has always been welcome to the children's programs at the library. He has joined reading, lego club and was included. The staff is wonderful with him. These programs need to be funded."
"The additional programs like the reader clubs for kids are a great resource. And so are the books of course!"
"Please provide funding for the W.O. Library to fulfill the use that the library provides to the community. Minimum funding is not sufficient."
"West Orange needs a viable, triving library. Please fund it!"
"Very important to read when your a child to expand your thoughts. The library is an intricate part of the community, please continue to fund the library."
"Please support our library!"
"The Library has always been one of the best reliable things about this town. Please give it the full funding it deserves!"
"This service - providing me with books has been a wonderful experience - I don't have to rely on friends or neighbors - as my children do not live in the area."
"The West Orange Library is one of the best kept secrets in town and is such a vital part of my family's life here in West Orange. Weare frequent patrons of the library - there at least two times a week, sometimes more. We aren't the only ones that love the WOPL. Every parking space is typically taken, most tables and chairs occupied, with library patrons of all ages and walks of life. The Librarians at the WOPL are incredible, dedicated, wonderful people, who work tirelessly to keep the library up to date, easy to use, and to plan and provide programming for children and adults of all ages.
The West Orange Public Library is very important resource in our town and the funding is so very important to keep this service going. Numerous studies have proven the importance of a library and it's long lasting effects on a community. Furthermore, numerous studies have also proven direct links between early literacy and success in life.
We owe that promise of success to our young people in town, no to mention the amount of kids who use the library as a place to do homework, to get tutored, to use the computers. This is a safe space for many kids who may not have it elsewhere. For others, it is a place to find their place among the books and movies, to explore the world at their fingertips that comes with having a library card. For my family, it's a bit of everything. It's a place we go to take out many books and movies, sure, a place to browse for school projects and a place to attend the numerous and wonderful library programs. But it's more than that, too. To us, it's our home away from home. A place my kids feel comfortable and encouraged to make books a top priority in their lives, a place that will stick with them for life and solidify some really great values about learning and reading, as my own town library did for me as a child.
My special needs son, who doesn't feel comfortable many places, asks often to go to the library, and loves getting lost among the stacks while perusing books, movies, comics, or audio books. He calls the library his happy place.
And I agree. It's a happy and important place for many of us in town. We cannot as a town, in good conscience, allow our library to falter."
"I travelled all the way from California to use your library to research an important West Orange resident, in US history, Alexander Jackson Davis. I appreciate your courteous and resourceful staff, and encourage you to support them fully."
"Very important!"
"Please fund our wonderful library. I use weekly and I really think it's an integral part of the community."
"The library is such a source of joy that to constrict its staff, hours, or scop would be denying knowledge and happiness to many patrons."
"We love this library and use it every week."
"I am a LVA tutor and use the library to teach my student."
"This is a beautiful library and the staff is very helpful."
"Thx very much for having me here in this library."
"All the time library help."
"Help all time."
"I moved to W.O. 3 1/2 years ago and started coming to this library immediately. I do not own a computer - so I need to come here to get info. They all treat me so well -always there to help when I need it (and boy do i need it)!! Hope they get funding to stay alive. It's a great place to come to!!!!"
"A library is a great place for all ages: little ones, big grown-ups at any time. It teaches kids respect for knowledge and share it with other people. Its variety of available teaching tools is amazing!!! Keep those kids learning about the world through the pages of a book!!"
"My entire family enjoy the richness of this library, please fund the library so we can continue to beneift from its resources."
"I have been coming here since 1979 and the staff and facility have seen my family's 4 generations. Use it with appreciation."
"The West Orange Library is the Crown Jewel of the City." The city where Thomas A. Edison, the citizen of the millenium, called home derves to have its library open on Sunday, and fully funded. Education is the light of life, I need light, the City needs light, the people of West Orange deserves LIGHT."
"We need improvements and more funding for more programs. Look at Livingston Library as the model."
"I see familie children with parental guidance in person checking books out every time. I visit WO Library this is so important to offer our community and its grown. Fund the library."