Columbus Metropolitan Library delivers nearly 5,000 postcards from patrons to OH Senate
In a bid to advocate for increased state funding for Columbus Metropolitan Library, nearly 5,000 postcards were delivered on June 2 to Ohio Senate President Rob McColley from library patrons who expressed the benefits the library system has had on their lives.
The postcard campaign and delivery comes as the Ohio Senate has taken up the budget process, and lawmakers are considering replacing funding for the state's public libraries with a single line item.
Columbus Metropolitan Library made the postcards available to customers at their library branches, where customers either drew or wrote about the positive impact of the system.
"The library is the only place where I can use a computer to search for jobs," one customer wrote. "It gave me the tools to get back on my feet." Another customer wrote on their postcard that they were homeless, living in a tent by a river, and that the library was one of the only free places they could go to.
"I've found an oasis," the person wrote.
A mother described the library as a "lifeline" for her three kids, writing that it's where her kids can "learn, laugh, and grow."
'By shifting [public libraries'] funding source to a line-item appropriation as proposed in the House budget, uncertainty and stagnation are brought to communities that rely on their public library,' CML CEO Lauren Hagan said in a prepared statement to the Ohio Senate Education Committee on Monday, May 12.
'Basic state funding for public libraries recognizes our unparalleled impact on all members of our community and ensures we can continue to meet the needs of Ohioans without interruption or compromise.'
Reporter Shahid Meighan can be reached at smeighan@dispatch.com, at ShahidMeighan on X, and at shahidthereporter.dispatch.com on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus library delivers 5,000 letters advocating for Ohio libraries
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