The 2023 Experience Osterville book is at the printers!
Experience Osterville is the sought after guide, now in its 11th year.
Welcome to the Osterville Village Library.
Your first thought might be, “Wow, what a big library for a small village.” It is. In fact, the library is “big” in a variety of ways. Most important, the Osterville Village Library is big in vision, scope and spirit. This library plays a big role in making a significant contribution to people’s lives. First, permit us to dispel at least two commonly held myths.
Number one, this library doesn’t cost the taxpayers millions due to its size. This is due to the fact three quarters of our annual funding is self-generated. That means we work hard to secure 75 cents of every dollar we spend in order to serve the community.
Number two, someone once said libraries will soon be obsolete. The folks who line up outside our front and back doors at opening time seven days a week apparently are unaware of this supposed fact. The dozens of patrons who use library WiFi, printers, scanners and our computers for public use must have missed that bulletin as well.
The Osterville Village Library hosted over 1000 programs, meetings and events last year, and whereas these events are also streamed for the at – home audience, OVL’s Youtube page boasts thousands of hits. Seems we have dozens, hundreds and thousands of patrons returning to this library in some way, shape or form time and time again. Who knew? We did.
It’s no small measure of work, although it may be a labor of love. Our satisfaction as stewards of what is a nearly 150-year-old institution resides in knowing we have assisted and enriched the lives of individuals, families and allied non-profits who in turn contribute their part to the community at large.
The Osterville Village Library is an extension of the community. Our work, and our purpose aligns with the modern definition of what a library is and does for the people it serves. We’re more than books. Think in terms of blood drives, free tax prep services, shelter from inclement weather during power outages, coats and toys for kids who have none, programs and events designed to foster community inclusion, art exhibits, concerts, parades, cappuccinos and parties.
If that sounds more like a community center than a library, you begin to get the picture. A community center with best sellers, periodicals, computer services, printing capability and a qualified staff to assist you every step of the way. That’s what a library is in 2023.
Thank you for helping us make it all possible.
Cyndy Cotton
Executive Director
PS Print addition will be available mid May, online version now.
