To the Editor:

If you are not a regular patron of the Piqua Public Library, please stop in and sign up for a free library card. You will be pleasantly surprised by the smiles and service you will get from the wonderful staff. The beautiful surroundings will encourage you to linger and look at the amazing Steiff Toy collection donated by Jean Wilson Reed, or read a newspaper or magazine you don’t subscribe to at home.

Go upstairs to the Local History Room where a knowledgeable staffer will help you find a yearbook, some history about your home, or a map from the collection that was also donated by a grateful patron.

At the reference desk ask if you can use a computer, register to vote, or join one of the many classes and reading groups the library offers. Ask if your own group can gather in one of the well-appointed meeting rooms. Then go down to the Children’s Department and be greeted by some of the most patient, kind, and creative people you will ever meet. Play with puppets and puzzles, sign up for the Reading Club, study their collection of Caldecott and Newbery Award-winning books, and of course, check out a stack of books and films to take home.

On Tuesday, May 4, the library will be asking voters to renew a 1.3 mill levy and approve 5 (1/2) mills for five years. The revenue will be used for operating expenses and materials, not for new building or construction costs. This levy would cost the owner of a $100,000 home $57.31 a year. I know the value of the large print books I check out for my mother each week is much more than that amount.

Please join me at the polls on May 4 and vote yes for the library levy.

— Susan Haas

Piqua