September 11, 2023

Benton Public Library District
Board of Trustees Meeting
September 11, 2023

1.  

   Members Present: Sue Wells, Brian Crisp, Pat Hollada, Theresa Bates, Kathy Storey, Debbie Clark, Larry Journey

   Absent: None

   Library Director: Susan Stickel

   Also Present: Kimberly Livesay

    

   Meeting Called to Order: 5:29 pm by Sue Wells

    

   Approval of August  Board Meeting Minutes

   1^st by Debbie Clark                                                2^nd by Theresa Bates

    

   Payment of Bills:

   1^st by Debbie Clark                                                2^nd by Kathy Storey          

    

   Financial Report:

   1^st by Debbie Clark                                                   2^nd by Kathy Storey

    

   Librarian’s Report:

    

   MAINTENANCE:

   The carpeting and tile in the library has been cleaned throughout the building.

   The worn Illinois flag has been replaced.

   Davis Tree Service has done a safety inspection of the trees in the garden and on the library grounds. Everything appears to be safe for now. Low hanging branches will need to be trimmed. This will be done soon.

   Wissinger has been here to complete an estimate for drainage issues at the library. Susan expects to hear from him soon.

   The computer upgrades are now complete. We have received our reimbursement of Category 2 funds through E-Rate that helped pay for this upgrade.

   The fence incident resulting from the hit and run has been repaired. The funeral home addition is in progress and the fence company can now install the additional fencing.

   Mr. A’s map needs attention. If anyone knows who would do this project for the library, please let Susan know.

   Susan thinks it would be a good idea to have Lisa clean the tables and chairs in the pavilion and the gazebo floor on a monthly basis. We discussed getting Lisa a blower to do this. Larry is going to check on prices for a new blower for the library.

   The entry way parking lot next door needs a load of rock, which is the bus entrance for our patrons. We voted yes for Susan to get the rock delivered.

    

   COMMUNITY OUTREACH:

   Beginning in October, Pat Dietrich will be leading a Senior Story Hour at Heritage Woods in Benton. We would like to offer this program to other facilities in Benton as well. She is excited to be doing this program. We already serve this population with our Homebound Program delivering books every two weeks. This will be an additional opportunity to serve the community.

   Pam Teague began a project while searching for local information in the community. She discovered newspaper coverage of a tragedy from many years ago. This discovery prompted her to proactively start a worthwhile project. An article in last week’s gazette mentioned the library as well.

    

    

   PROGRAMMING:

   Plans are underway for the 2^nd Annual Halloween in the Garden. The Benton Area Volunteers have reached out to participate in helping set up/work the event. This is very much appreciated. We will need to close the garden a few days ahead of the event to prepare (2-3 days ahead). This will occur on Friday, October 27^th from 4-7 pm.

   Soon after this event, work will begin on Christmas activities.

   Kimberly added that the Library Crawl will begin on October 1^st and run through October 31^st. The Benton Library is now a stop on this tour of many libraries in the IHLS region.

    

   Old Business:

   EXECUTIVE SESSION

   We voted to go into Executive Session at 6:09 PM in regards to personnel

   We came out of the Executive Session at 6:26 pm.

    

   *The Executive Session was recorded and is kept on file.

    

   Personnel:

   The Benton Library Board regretfully accepted the written resignation of Genealogy Director, Pam Teague, as of September 30, 2023. Brian has typed a letter from the board to give to Pam Teague.

    

   New Business

   We discussed the idea of getting new tables for outside vs. staining the old ones that we currently have. The wood on the old tables are still in very good condition. Pat mentioned that a couple of graduating classes are wanting to donate money for tables, but we are unsure of the total for the classes donations except for one, which might be around $800.

   There was a motion made by Theresa Bates to stain the tables and refinish them.

   1^st by Theresa Bates                                 2^nd by Debbie Clark

   6 yes, 1 opposed

    

   Debbie Clark said she would check with Ace Hardware about thir recommendations for what stain to purchase.

    

   Theresa Bates made a motion to the entities who are wanting to donate money to the library to get in contact with Susan about possible monetary donations.

   1^st by Theresa Bates                                 2^nd by Debbie Clark

   All voted yes

   Other

   NONE

    

   Public Comment

   NONE

    

   Adjournment: 6:29 pm by Sue Wells

    

   1^st by Kathy Storey                                                2^nd by Pat Hollada

BACK TO 2023

BACK TO ARCHIVE OF MINUTES