COMMENTARY
Charity Vogel: Library story provides own happy ending
So this is what determination looks like. On a warm summer morning, it’s as simple as sunlight streaming through tall 1920s windows onto shelves of hardcovers.
It’s a bank of six computers, their monitors and keyboards shiny and new, ready for another day of use.
It’s 1,400 people, each of whom made the decision at some point in the past four years that they wanted—no, needed—a library in South Buffalo’s Cazenovia Park.
And followed through. The white plastic library card toggles on the key chains of these registered members aren’t as significant as, say, the ink-stained fingers of voting Iraqis, but there’s no doubt that the little key-cards are in their own quiet way badges of honor and pride.
“They’re really cool,” said Elizabeth Berry, who uses the library. “You can take out books, and they’re working on a new computer lab.”
For 80 years, the brick building in the Olmsted-designed city park was a public library. Generations of South Buffalo kids learned to read here; many discovered a love of books and the places stories could take them. This building, solid and unprepossessing as a can of beans, stood for potential.
Then came 2005, the year of Erie County’s budget meltdown. Cuts were made all over, and officials running the Buffalo&Erie County Public Library system had to make changes.
One choice was to close 16 libraries across the county. Caz was on that list.
But something curious happened. The people of South Buffalo, and others in nearby environs who love this place, said no.
No to closing. No to boxing up the hardcovers and paperbacks, the children’s materials and the computer equipment. No to locking the doors that had welcomed kids, families and seniors since 1925.
Instead, they said this: Those doors will stay open.
This summer, the old brick structure re-emerged into brand-new life as the Cazenovia Community Resource Center &Library. A grand opening last month marked the end of three years of work on the building, including the addition of handicapped access, new computer systems, a renovated basement and fresh paint. AmeriCorps donated lots of time, and volunteers put in more. Home Depot gave supplies; the Wendt Foundation donated money for six computers on the main floor, and another 12 in a new technology lab.
The work has paid off. In three years, the number of registered patrons climbed from zero to 1,400. In that time, the number of people using the site each month rose from 500 to almost 1,000. Partnerships with Mercy Hospital, the YMCA and a tutoring service are under way. This summer, camps will bring kids together for reading, tennis and soccer.
“The public was right. They said, ‘We want this open,’ ” said Council Member Mickey Kearns, a South Buffalo Democrat who grew up a few streets away from Caz and who led the preservation effort after he was elected in 2005. “Not only are our statistics steady, they’re increasing. We’re operating like a real library.”
Here in South Buffalo, things don’t come as easily as in some other places. But people here believe in miracles, and that makes up for a lot.
Put Caz Library in the miracle category, starting now. The new center, born of crisis and tears, has become a bright beacon of opportunity.
Can determination save a beloved book spot? Can willpower turn a bruising no into a welcoming yes?
Visit the little library that could, and see for yourself.
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