Sometimes real life is as well scripted as the movies. At the San Marino City Council meeting on November 8, Father Paul Fitzpatrick, Administrator of St. Felicitas and Perpetua Parish in San Marino, was invited to give the invocation. Among the lovely words of the Father’s prayer were these: “Urge us and challenge us to give to others…”
 
Supporters of the San Marino Public Library Foundation have taken this credo to heart and raised over $13 million of the $17 million necessary to build the library’s new facility. In fact, immediately following the invocation, Bob Sievers, President of the Foundation, rose from the audience to present the City Council and Mayor Dr. Matthew Lin with a $600,000 check.
 
“We appreciate your efforts,” the Mayor told members of the Foundation who attended the meeting. “You’ve done a wonderful job.”
 
“We’ll be back with more,” Sievers assured the Mayor.
 
In the meantime, as Construction Manager Alex Main reported later that evening to the City Council, construction of the new library is proceeding on schedule. The foundation will be poured during the week of November 20.
 
“There’s something symbolic about the foundation being poured the week before Thanksgiving,” says City Librarian Carolyn Crain. “At long last, our dream for a new facility is becoming a reality, right before our eyes. We feel truly blessed and, especially during this time of year, want to thank each and every member of the community who has given us their support.”
 
The mission of the San Marino Library Foundation is to assist the residents of the City of San Marino as a supplemental funding source for the San Marino Public Library and to improve the quality of library and information service to the citizens of San Marino. For more information on donation opportunities, contact Maureen Micklich, Director of Development, at 626.300.0779 or visit the Foundation’s website, http://brandnewlibrary.org.