Tears and a BIG THANK YOU

 First, let’s get the sadness out of the way:
 
We know that you, like us, were probably devastated when you saw the results of the June 2 vote on financing a new library for El Cerrito. We mourn the lost opportunity.
 
Second, we offer a big THANK YOU to the hundreds of volunteers who worked so hard, carrying petitions to get the measure on the ballot. 
 
Who spent hours talking to their neighbors urging support for a modern, safe library for El Cerrito.
 
Who donated hard-earned dollars to support campaign materials.
 
So, what’s next?
 
Now that this missed opportunity is behind us, we, like you, wait to see what City leaders will propose as a strategy to meet the ongoing, urgent, unmet  library needs in El Cerrito. Our current library is still over 70 years old, seismically unsafe, too small for a community of our size, without proper heating and cooling equipment and with inadequate staff space for the hard working librarians who serve us.
 
We await new direction from City leadership.
 
In the meanwhile, our Library Foundation, with your continued support, will do all we can to advocate for the kind of library our community needs and wants. We will also do what we can to provide support for excellent library services within the severe limitations of our current library building. Even though the June financing measure failed, the need for vibrant library service goes on. 
 
We will be at the July 4 WorldOne Celebration interested in hearing from all of you what you think our community and our Foundation should be doing in the months ahead to make some refreshing lemonade.