Here's one for the community clubhouse

The truth is libraries are raucous clubhouses for free speech, controversy and community.

–Paula Poundstone

Of late, many library members and Facebook fans have been receiving requests for letters of support for the John Trigg Ester Library's capital proposal to the legislature. As members, you all have a wide variety of options to choose from when it comes to opinion or action. You can even ignore the project, focus on other things in your lives, etc. But what is a library truly worth? And why should you support building a "raucous clubhouse"?

Well, here's what some notable people have thought about the value of libraries:

With a library you are free, not confined by temporary political climates. It is the most democratic of institutions because no one—but no one at all—can tell you what to read and when and how.
—Doris Lessing

Cutting libraries during a recession is like cutting hospitals during a plague.
—Eleanor Crumblehulme 

What a school thinks about its library is a measure of what it feels about education.
—Harold Howe  

What is more important in a library than anything else—than everything else—is the fact that it exists.
—Archibald MacLeish

As board members, it is our role to bring the vision of the Ester library to reality in a timely and fiscally responsible fashion. Even if our attempt to gain an appropriation from the Alaska Legislature fails this year, the support we gain will bolster our attempt next year. The JTEL can provide a strong example of thrifty, far-seeing northern-appropriate public construction of the kind that should be supported by the legislature and business. And letters can always be aimed and used for other proposals that we will be crafting and sending to other funders. So please—write a letter of support. Thank you.

Once and future timeline

Looking at our capital fundraising and our new library-related construction, this timeline extends into the past as far back as 2012 and as far into the future as 2017. Its midpoint is February 6, 2015 (although it isn't exactly that precise on this graph), because that was the due date for the proposals to the Alaska Legislature (5 pm, to be exact). This gives you an idea of the variety of events and construction ahead of us!

We are looking for members for the Construction Committee, the Fundraising Committee, and help with the upcoming fundraisers. The Friends of the Ester Library can use your help, too—even a little bit makes a big difference!

Love that Library!

Share the Love!

Each year our Pick.Click.Give. campaign is dedicated to a specific aspect of the John Trigg Ester Library's work. We are still working on gaining the funds to construct our building, but we have enough to do the sitework, and we are hoping that you will sweeten the pot and help us earn more matching funds. This summer, the grand transformation begins!

Then maybe all those books can come out of storage and onto shelves—where people can take them off and read them!

New board member, progress on the catalog, and plans for the summer

We have several events coming up in February through May (more on that soon), and we now have one alternate board member, Jasmine Stokes, to help when the regular board members are out of town or unable to make it. She is working with Varpu Lotvonen on organizing our collections. Jasmine has long been associated with Angry Young & Poor and various theatre efforts in town, and has strong organizational skills (she's also an excellent costumer!). She attended her first meeting in January, but assisted the library with the LiBerry Music Festival as stage manager.

The JTEL catalog is now up to 3,479 titles in our collections, and more being added rapidly. The advantage of LibraryThing, although it doesn't do much that a full-scale library might need, is that it is very very simple, and adequate for our current needs. Board member Phil Rulon is looking into open-source software that might serve as full-function library software, such as Evergreen ILS. However, this software, and any such full-service open-source software, may be beyond us at for several years, as described in this article in Library Journal.

Our upcoming construction plans include 1) making the interior of the Clausen Cabin useable; 2) adding a ramp and arctic entries; and 3) fixing the front railing of the cabin.

We also will be doing sitework on the library site; if we get sufficient funds from the legislature and other sources, we can tackle the foundation and shell as well as the construction survey and groundwork—but we need your help. How? Simple! write to your legislator in support of the JTEL's capital request to construct a passive house community library and cc us a copy of your letter. More information is available here.

Birch syrup at the library

In the last weeks, we've had leafout, but before the buds actually burst, the sap was running from the ground up through the roots and trunks of trees. Millions of gallons of sap rise in the trees around us, and the trees change color as their bark and limbs prepare for spring, the catkins come out and the pollen from willows and aspens and cottonwoods spreads. That's the sap-tappers' time of year, and when birch syrup is made.

The JTEL is working with the OneTree Alaska program to begin a regular tapping program on our property on Village Road. After a Memorandum of Agreement is drawn up, we can arrange to use OneTree's reverse osmosis machine and tapping equipment. (You may have seen Birch Pavelsky and Jan Dawe of OneTree as well as Deirdre Helfferich and Hans Mölders of the JTEL board recently, traipsing about on the property, checking buckets.)

Sixteen birch trees will be coming down this summer when we start work on the driveway (more about that coming soon), so these trees were chosen for the first season's work, but instead of using only one tap, three taps per tree were used since they will be cut down. The peculiar weather reduced the tapping time, but the total collected was 57 gallons of sap. OneTree will receive two-thirds of this in exchange for the use of their equipment, and the JTEL will receive one-third of reduced sap (some syrup, some sap at 14% sugars), which can be used as prizes for upcoming events.

More to come!

Annual membership meeting this weekend!

This weekend is the 2012 John Trigg Ester Library membership meeting, the 4th annual library membership meeting since the library incorporated. The meeting should be brief (less than an hour), but it is vital that the members turn out: your presence is needed. (Besides, there's going to be some good appetizers to snack on as the meeting starts.)

Here's the invitation from the board president:

Good afternoon,

I invite you to the John Trigg Ester Library annual meeting this Sunday afternoon October 21. Come join the board of directors and fellow library members at the Hartung Hall in beautiful downtown Ester. We will begin with refreshments at 4:00 and the opportunity to renew your membership, review and discuss the library designs, chat with friends and review the annual report. The meeting will begin at 5:00 and is expected to take less than an hour. (All memberships run from annual meeting to annual meeting, so everyone needs to renew this October for the 2012-2013 year.)

The main business of the day is the election of new board members. Myself, Nancy Burnham, Molly Rettig and Jan Olhmsted will be continuing our terms on the board for another year, but we will be electing three (3) new board members and two (2) alternates. (Board member positions are for 2-years, alternates for 1-year.) We are looking for interested volunteers with a variety of skills. Experience in business, project management, membership management, collections development, fundraising, grant writing, communications, graphic design and willingness to volunteer are just some of the skills we are looking for in the new board. Everyone has a talent to share! If you have any questions about serving on the board please contact me.

I will be sharing updates on our progress this Sunday. I hope to see you there!

Cheers,
Monique Musick
JTEL President

January 2012 events at the Ester library

The next year at the Ester library will be full of activity! Between our new committees and programs and planning for the building construction, there will be many opportunities to volunteer, experience the library's programs and community events, or savor the collection's offerings!

Growing Ester's Biodiversity: program launch

The new GEB program is being launched in January, starting with a book & movie discussion group. The initial meeting of this group is Saturday, Jan. 14, 4:30 pm at the library business office (studio #8, 2922 Parks Highway, upstairs at the Annex).  The next day, same time and same place, the GEB grantwriting group will get together to create the long-term plan for the program and get down to some serious grant applications. Please sign up for the GEB program newsletter if you'd like to stay informed about program events and volunteer opportunities.

Library Lecture Series: Sandy Jamieson

Sandy Jamieson, local painter, pilot, and guide, is the featured speaker who will be kicking off the 2012 lecture series. Come and hear Sandy talk about his experiences on the third Wednesday of the month, Jan. 18, 7 pm at Hartung Hall.

Capital Campaign: fundraising to construct the new library

The library's capital campaign, begun in 2009, is gearing up for the home stretch on fundraising for construction. The library has received strong support from the state and the borough, and the Grants & Fundraising Committee is now looking to private foundations and individual donation drives & fundraisers for the rest. The library design should be completed in January, and we are finishing up the business plan and developing a construction plan, but can use help! The committee meets on the first Tuesday of the month; our first meeting in 2012 will be at the JTEL office, Tuesday, Jan. 3, 6 pm. If you have grantwriting skills or knowledge of grant management, please come! We can use your help.

On Sunday, Jan. 22, 6 pm at the JTEL office, Monique Musick, JTEL president, will present an outline of grant-related needs to the Construction Committee at their first meeting of the year. If you are interested in serving on the construction committee, please attend!

For other meetings and events, please see our Calendar page on this blog, or follow us on Facebook!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The JTEL Board of Directors put out a Thanksgiving update to the membership:

Happy Thanksgiving!

The board of directors of the John Trigg Ester Library would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your support over the years. We have so much to be thankful for. With your support we have purchased land for the new library, constructed a gazebo for outdoor gatherings and performances, designed an incredible community space to Passiv Haus standards (meaning it has nearly net-zero energy demand, makes its own heat and much of its own electricity, and is a VERY affordable building to operate), became a federally recognized nonprofit organization, established an endowment for long-term support of JTEL operations, and so much more. The turnout at our fundraising events this year, including the Library Lallapalooza, LiBerry Music Festival & Pie Throwdown, and Readers on the Run, broke all records and provided vital operating and building support funding. We are currently about one-quarter of the way toward being able to build the new library.

We have made a lot of progress, but there is still much to do. As members, bibliophiles and library supporters there are many ways that you too can help. Our board meetings always include opportunities for public comment, so join us the second Tuesday of each month in our office at the ANNEX, Suite 8 (upstairs). Our agendas, minutes and other information are available on our website: www.esterlibrary.org. And please, become a JTEL fan and follow us on Facebook.

CURRENT LIBRARY
When was the last time you stopped in to the current Ester library? It is filled from floor to ceiling with a great variety of books and media. Volunteers have done a great job clearing out the stacks of books and making the library as neat and functional as possible. The JTEL is operating on a self-service, honor system and is maintained by volunteers. If you are interested in helping out with the book return system, shelving, cleaning and other chores around the current library, let us know and we'd be glad to train new volunteers to assist with managing the library. We have plans for improving the current space that we hope to be announcing soon. Stay tuned for news of a newly improved library! If you'd like to help, please respond and say you'd like to be a LIBRARY VOLUNTEER.

EVENTS & PROGRAMS COMMITTEE
Have you attended one of our library lectures? We have had presentations from artists, authors, builders and more. We are planning a whole new line-up of presenters starting next spring. Do you have ideas on great presenters? Maybe you like helping to plan fundraising events? We are looking for brand-new fundraising event approaches. Do you have some great ideas? If so, you are the perfect fit for this committee! Please respond and say you'd like to be put in contact with the EVENTS & PROGRAMS COMMITTEE.

CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE
Since 2006 we have been working on designing a library with room for gathering space and improved services for the community of Ester and surrounding areas. After many variations, we have finally arrived at a truly revolutionary design utilizing Passiv Haus building standards. The JTEL library will be the first public building in Alaska to have Zero Energy consumption annually. The work for the construction committee is by no means finished even though our plans are 95% complete.

We need an updated construction timeline. We need to complete our local builders and vendors list for procurement. We need to begin drafting an RFP for contractors. We need to identify our project management strategy and all steps needed to bring the library from plan to finished project. We need to keep in touch with the designers and project leader to make sure we answer any building-related questions and planning concerns. The construction committee, as opposed to the general make-up of the board, includes contractors and other professionals familiar with the building industry in Alaska. If you are interested in joining the team please reply and say you'd like to be added to the CONSTRUCTION COMMITTEE e-mail list. Generally the committee meets once a month on a Sunday evening.

CAPITAL CAMPAIGN & GRANT WRITING COMMITTEE
Community support for the library has been incredible, but we have to look beyond the checkbooks of our neighbors to make the $800,000 building a reality. Volunteers on the capital campaign committee have been busy brainstorming ways to generate the funding needed to build the new library, including identifying grant opportunities for which the library is eligible. There are many aspects to this work, and more roles than just grant writing. The look and branding of the library is a part. The committee is working on marketing materials and community outreach in addition to business planing, budget development, and creation of a boiler-plate grant application. We have not yet submitted any grant applications because so much work needs to happen first to finalize the building and operating budgets, identify partners and gather the demographic data needed for the statement of need and evaluation plans. It is a mix of MARKETING, BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, and GRANT WRITING, and it is absolutely vital to the future of the library. The committee meets once a month, generally on a Sunday evening, with special meetings held by subcommittees for specific projects on other dates as agreed. If you are interested please reply and say you'd like to be added to the CAPITAL COMMITTEE e-mail list.

FINANCE COMMITTEE
Up to this point the treasurer of the organization has had a lot of control over the finances of the library, with regular reporting to the board, but as the library grows, so to must its accounting practices and financial policies. This is a temporary committee dedicated to writing up accounting procedures for the JTEL. From clarifying Quickbooks procedures to establishing cash management policies, we need to make sure that JTEL is following GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and is audit ready. If you have an accounting or business management background and would like to offer assistance in the development of financial policies please reply and say you'd like to be added to the FINANCE COMMITTEE e-mail list.

MEMBERSHIP
Life is busy, and many of you probably do not have time to commit to the library. We understand. One way you can always help the library is to maintain your membership. We distributed membership envelopes broadly before the October annual membership meeting. Did you return yours? An annual membership is a minimum of $5 per person, but if you are able to contribute more it is truly appreciated. The new membership year began in October—chances are your membership has expired! Stop by the current library and fill out the membership form there, send in an envelope if you have one around the house, our reply and ask for MEMBERSHIP information. I'm sorry, but we do not have online membership renewal at this time.

If you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to contact me. Blessings to you and your loved ones during this season of thankfulness.

Best Regards,
Monique Musick
JTEL President

Library lecture on Passive House design by Thorsten Chlupp

A packed audience listened to Thorsten Chlupp's lecture on superinsulated building construction and passive solar heating for homes and communities on April 20, and peppered Chlupp with questions about technical details, energy and building costs and savings, and the water systems for heat storage. The Passive House Performance Standard results in energy savings that far surpasses LEEDs and 5-star energy rated homes. Some of the details were surprising to audience members; for example, the walls in passive structures breathe, using not vapor barriers but vapor-permeable membranes. "You have to forget everything you know about building," Chlupp said. He described how Passive House construction can result in a 90% savings on heating costs compared to conventional building, even in Alaska. This design is now standard for new public buildings throughout Germany, where it has been used since the 1990s, and is spreading elsewhere in Europe also. More about Passive House building techniques, Fairbanks-area Passive Houses, and Chlupp's experience with this method can be found at the Library Lecture Series page on Chlupp's talk.

 

Thorsten Chlupp, local builder experienced in
Passive House Construction. Photo by Monique Musick.

An attentive audience of builders, architects, and otherwise interested listeners at the April 20 lecture by Thorsten Chlupp at Hartung Hall. Chlupp is explaining the solar heating capacity for a planned community in Okotoks, Alberta, Canada, the Drake Landing Solar Community. Drake Landing's community heating system currently serves 52 homes, all from stored solar energy. Photo by Monique Musick.

Latest developments at the Ester library

Many exciting new developments have occurred in the last few weeks. These include:

• Sending the 501(c)(3) application to the IRS. It's quite likely that we will receive our federal charitable nonprofit status sometime this summer (the application was sent March 1); this means that donations to the library will be tax-deductible for the 2011 calendar year. The board of directors has been working toward this for over a year and a half, developing the appropriate policies, bylaws, and other organizational documents needed for a charitable organization. We will provide donors with a receipt and our identification number when we receive it. And our sincere thanks!
• The (almost) final architectural plans have been received from USKH. Other pieces, including the civil engineering and site plan, the structural plans, and the detailed architectural plans, have been contracted for and are expected by May 11, 2011. Electrical engineering, the computing and internet technology plan, and our various permits are also progressing. To view the current floor and site plans, please check out the design and construction planning pages on our website.
• Launching our community survey. This important survey will help the board plan future programs and better manage the library; the suggestions and comments we've already received in this first two weeks have given us some great insights that will help us with construction, operations, and budgeting. The board is seeking critiques, comments, kudos, and suggestions; we are hoping to see how the community views the role of a library; the importance and meaning of libraries and community spaces to the local population; the best hours and desired programs or services for the community; how important internet access, computers, and e-books at the library are to people; reading and materials preferences; and more. Board members and other volunteers will be at the Ester Post Office every Saturday through the month of April from 10 am to 1:30 pm to discuss the library's future with you. Please come and talk with us and tell us what you think!
• Setting up an endowment. While we have a capital campaign to raise funds for our building construction, we also need to plan for our long-term fiscal health. Operating the library in perpetuity requires a stable source of funding, and an endowment can help supply this stability. The board voted at its March 13 meeting to establish an endowment with the Alaska Community Foundation, beginning with a $2,000 allocation from our savings; we will need to increase this to $5,000 within a year in order to secure it. As soon as it is set up (which should be no later than the end of April, and perhaps sooner), supporters of the library will be able to donate to the fund in a variety of ways, including payroll deduction, the PickClickGive program, bequests, and other possibilities.
• Scheduling a grantwriting workshop. A significant part of our capital campaign includes applying for construction grants. We are offering a grantwriting workshop/work session to the public on the first two weekends in April, where attendees will gain experience in the grant application process by working on actual grants for the construction of the library. We expect a group of people of mixed experience; students will be both teaching and learning from each other and the instructors. (For more information, please contact us at library@esterrepublic.com or call 451-0636.) If you are on Facebook, you can sign up as an attendee there, too.
• Our second library lecture series season has begun! Upcoming lectures will include Thorsten Chlupp on April 20, discussing the type of design we plan to use in the new building, Passivehaus design for low or near-zero net energy usage; Jennifer Jolis on the fate of the people of Attu Island during World War II (May 18); Neil Davis; Sandy Jamieson; and others. This season's lectures are at Hartung Hall on the third Wednesday of the month, 7 pm.

These are the major highlights of the library's current activities, but there is more. If you are interested in becoming more actively involved with the John Trigg Ester Library or would like more information, please contact any member of the board.

Librarypalooza & Community Survey

The Librarypalooza is tomorrow! We're releasing the community library survey at the same time. This survey is designed to get feedback on our building plans, help guide us for future fundraising and program decisions, find out about the needs of the community, and other library-related things. Please participate in the survey. To take our survey, go here:

Ester Library Survey

Passive House library

At the Construction Committee meeting on Sunday, there was considerable discussion about the Passive House standard as a guide for the design of the new library. Passive House is a rigorous energy performance standard that originated in Germany in the 1990s. Here's the basics:

Performance Characteristics

• Airtight building shell ≤ 0.6 ACH @ 50 pascal pressure, measured by blower-door test.

• Annual heat requirement ≤ 15 kWh/m2/year (4.75 kBtu/sf/yr)

• Primary Energy ≤ 120 kWh/m2/year (38.1 kBtu/sf/yr)

In addition, the following are recommendations, varying with climate:

• Window u-value ≤ 0.8 W/m2/K

• Ventilation system with heat recovery with ≥ 75% efficiency with low electric consumption @ 0.45 Wh/m3

• Thermal Bridge Free Construction ≤ 0.01 W/mK

This kind of construction is so energy-efficient, the buildings don't need a furnace! The JTEL board and the construction committee are leaning toward this design standard because it will keep operating costs for the building very, very low. Passive House is a performance standard only, however; unlike the LEED standard, the greeness of the materials or whether they are of local manufacture is not a consideration. For more information on the Passive House standard, check out these links:

• detailed information on what makes a building a Passive House
• Passive House Institute of the US
• Swiss Passive House equivalent: the Minergie standard
• Wikipedia entry on Passive House

Upcoming library meetings

Both the Construction Committee and the Capital Campaign Committee are meeting this week.

Capital Campaign: Wednesday, December 1, 6 pm at the JTEL business office (agenda)
Construction: Sunday, December 5, 4 pm at the Golden Eagle Saloon (agenda)

And the library board is meeting next week:

Board of Directors: Friday, December 10, 7 pm at the JTEL business office (agenda)

All of these are open meetings; if you are interested in helping with the fundraising, please come to the Capital Campaign Committee meeting.

Annual meeting update and upcoming committee meetings

The JTEL annual meeting was a success, with 23 library members in attendance. New bylaws were reviewed, amended, and passed, and a new board elected. The board of directors now includes:

• Ken Bluhm, new member and alternate, to 2012
• Greta Burkart, re-elected to another term, to 2012 
• Nancy Burnham, continuing member, to 2011
• Amy Cameron, new member and alternate, to 2012
• Roy Earnest, new member, to 2012
• Eric Glos, continuing member, to 2011
• Melinda Harris, re-elected to another term, to 2012
• Deirdre Helfferich, continuing member, to 2011
• Monique Musick, continuing member, to 2011

Two new committees have been created to focus on the design and construction of the library building and to raise funds for the library. Several people volunteered for these committees at the meeting, but both committees could use more help.

• Capital Campaign Committee: this group will focus on grantwriting, organizing the fundraisers, publicizing the library for the purpose of fundraising, setting up an endowment or other long-term support, the bookshelf dedications, shirt sales, solicitations to individuals and companies or organizations, and coming up with other means to provide funding for construction, library operation, and library programs. The committee's first meeting is Wednesday, Nov. 3, 6 pm, at the Republic Press office, studio #2 at the Annex, 2922 Parks Highway (entrance on the right-hand side of the building).
• Construction Committee: this committee will oversee the construction of the new library building, establishing a budget and timeline, securing materials and labor, working on the details of contracts, and so on. The first meeting is also on Wednesday, Nov. 3, but at 7 pm at the Golden Eagle Saloon on Main Street in Ester. MEETING CHANGE: the meeting will be held Sunday, October 31, 4 pm at the Eagle, so all members can attend.

Annual meeting this Sunday!

The library's second annual membership meeting is coming up this weekend, October 24th, at 4 pm. A potluck will kick things off, starting between 3 and 3:30. There will be door prizes and plenty of good food, as well as information on:

• grants and appropriations
• construction plans and committee
• architectural design
• marketing and publicity
• library history & update
• capital campaign and endowment
• bylaws & the federal nonprofit application
• board elections (see candidate bios)

Some information is on line in advance of the meeting. You can find the meeting packet and the agenda at the JTEL website.

See you there!

Special membership meeting!

Attention, library members! There will be a special membership meeting on Sunday, June 13, at Hartung Hall in Ester, at 6 pm. This important meeting is being called to 1) amend the bylaws and 2) brief the membership on designwork and nonprofit application status. One of the bylaws amendments under consideration is necessary for our federal nonprofit status. This is a very important meeting and your attendance will be greatly appreciated. Proposed bylaws amendments will be available for review on the library website, www.esterlibrary.org. For more information, please contact the JTEL board at board@esterlibrary.org, or call Deirdre Helfferich, president, at 479-3368.