Library to get help from 'Friends'
By Field Manley Millen New Intern

Pictured are, from left, Jerry Messex, pulic relations director Jane Johnson and Wilma Gainey. (Staff photo by Field Manley, Millen News Intern)

The Jenkins County Memorial Library has partnered up with a national organization known as Friends of the Library.

Friends of the Library is a nonprofit group anyone can join to help with library events. The group helps raise funds for the library, holds special programs, promotes awareness of library events and resources, encourages people to vote on library- related issues and provides refreshments at library events.

The "friends" have helped with recent events such as a sculpture exhibit by Donny Hume, and they have shown the Academy Award-winning movie, An Inconvenient Truth.

The library has been working to get this project going for a few years and finally saw its hard work rewarded on April 1.

"We couldn't get this program started here because of a lack of interest," said Wilma Gainey, branch manager of the library, "but now we have some motivated people, some real go getters." Currently, there are about 25 members of the Jenkins County branch, but Jerry Messex, president of the local Friends of the Library organization, says more volunteers are needed.

One inconvenient truth the library has had to face for over a year is that the air conditioning is down. "The fact that there is no emergency money for the library to repair the broken air conditioner is unacceptable, and a reflection of the lack of interest," said Messex. "If more people joined the friends organization, then that money could fix the air conditioning."

Anyone interested in volunteering for the program should contact the library.

(Editor's note: The Jenkins County Commissioners recently voted to replace/repair the air conditioning unit at the library.)