Patrons didn’t let our COVID closure stop them from reading. As you can see from the statistics below, many people shifted to an electronic mode of accessing materials (OverDrive). Now that patrons have learned these helpful skills, we’ll see if they ever go back.
OverDrive Usage
April-June 2020 vs. April-June 2019
OVERALL USAGE
Usage among all formats (ebooks and audiobooks) increased 67%. Patrons checked out 9,784 items!
AUDIO
Here’s hoping your walks and daily chores were more interesting. Audio usage rose by 35%.
EBOOKS
From mysteries to literary fiction, to science and history, ebook usage went up by 111%.
KIDS
Kids are also benefitting from our online collection. Children’s materials increased a whopping 179%!
TEENS
Young Adult materials were up 70% over last year.
Join the Howe Sustainers Circle
Donate thru the Monthly Giving Program
Please consider going online now to set up an automatic monthly donation to Howe Library. Your participation in the monthly giving program signals your commitment to the Howe and provides consistent financial support for the library throughout the year. Simply go to our donation page and choose monthly under donation schedule: www.howelibrary.org/donate
Thank you to following donors who joined the Howe Sustainers Circle
The Financial Howe
I am pleased to report that despite the COVID disruptions, The Howe Corporation’s finances came through the year very positively.
FUNDING SOURCES
As you probably know, Howe Library is funded from two sources: The Town of Hanover, and The Howe Library Corporation. Pursuant to a Memorandum of Understanding, The Town primarily funds operations, and the Corporation supplements this with funds for programs (adult and youth), collection support, building enhancements and new initiatives.
Overall, in the 2020 Fiscal year which ended June 30 the Town funded $1,134,958 and The Corporation $220,552, consisting principally of $139,561 in gifts and $56,495 drawn from the endowment. That is just 1.3% of the endowment, well below our usual 2-3% draw.
REVENUES
The majority of the Corporation’s income comes from gifts to the Annual Fund, which raised $97,220 this year from 436 donors, including 45 new supporters. This is $9,309 above last year’s result, testifying to the generosity and commitment of our donors. Restricted gifts added an additional $6,605 to our total.
Our other major income source for the past nine years has been the Howe Classic, the March mini-golf tournament played on a course laid out throughout the library. When the Classic was cancelled in early March, nearly all our sponsors and patrons generously turned their Classic commitments into donations, providing income of $35,736. With much reduced expenses, this brought net income to $32,418, just $454 less than last year.
EXPENSES
In FY20, the Corporation’s expenses totaled $220,552. Expenses are shown in the circular graph in seven categories:
Administration; Technical Services; Public Services; Building Repairs, Furniture and Equipment; Development Program; Building Maintenance Payment to Town; and Other Expenses
Although they had been budgeted higher, expenses were $8,464 lower than last year, at least in part reflecting the reduced activities after the library was closed for COVID.
INVESTMENTS
Thanks to donors over many years, The Corporation holds a substantial Endowment. At our June 30 fiscal year end, the Endowment, from which as noted above we had withdrawn the funds needed to support expenses, stood at $4.2 million, up 2% ($83,000) over the previous year.
FINANCE COMMITTEE
The Finance Committee has the responsibility to oversee the assets of the Corporation. Our Investment Policy requires that the assets be invested in certain stock and bond index funds, and prohibits more speculative investments. Ledyard Financial has held and invested the Endowment accordingly for many years. The Finance Committee reviews this with Ledyard at least semiannually.
Committee activities also include arranging the preparation and filing of taxes (as a 501.c.3 we owe no taxes, but must file supporting information), and assisting the Library Director and Trustees in developing the Corporation budget and dealing with any financial issues.
We would be glad to receive any comments or requests for further information.
Tom Brydges Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair
FALL 2020 | HOWE LIBRARY CORPORATION
DIRECTOR’S REPORT FY20
Providing Services and Programs in the time of COVID
This year was clearly not how we had foreseen our year to end. Who could have predicted that we would be living something out of a Michael Crichton book or better yet, a Charlie Wheelan novel? None of us could have imagined a year ago what we have had to do in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Like other town departments, the Howe staff has rolled up our sleeves and found alternative and safe ways to continue supporting our community’s needs.
We started the calendar year with a list of great programs that we planned to build upon. Little did we know that we would have to completely shut down our public services. The first several months were spent primarily working with the town and staff on identifying, reviewing and consulting with managers on safety precautions and trying to predict which services we would be able to restore and when that would happen.
howetogive@thehowe.org
Continued programming at the Howe has been an essential and supportive service to our community.
It took us a couple of months to assess and evaluate what were the core services that could be provided to our community in a safe way. Resoundingly, it was access to our collection. After much research and training on everything COVID (starting with how to transition staff back to the workforce) our staff was ready to go back to what they know best, making sure we could offer access to reliable resources and information. We all became experts on Zoom, Facebook live, and other online tools. In addition, we learned how many days a book should be stored aside for safe quarantine. We coordinated our library take-out services and offered all forms of virtual programming. Examples range from how to make your own stop animation short film to virtual author talks to rapid reviews.
The good news is that although the delivery of our services, programs and growing collection at the Howe has changed, we continue to consistently provide these in-demand services to our community. Our book groups resulted in very eager and appreciative attendees. Our ESL classes had a surge in attendance. Our first day of book requests was well over one-hundred items, not to mention our book returns that ranged in the thousands of items returned in our first week of service. It has become clear to us that continued programming at the Howe has been an essential and supportive service to our community.
am impressed and very grateful to our staff who continue to develop creative and engaging programs and services. We will continue our efforts to provide safe alternatives through this crisis knowing such services and programs provide a great benefit to the community during this challenging time.
Marilyn Blight; Richard and Lin Brown; Gail Kuhl and Wayne Gersen; Mariruth Graham; Bruce and Michele Sacerdote; and The Madonia Family
Rubi Simon Director, Howe Library
Author Eric Jay Dolin (bottom) speaks with Howe librarians, Megan Coleman and Jared Jenisch, and the broader community about his book, A Furious Sky: The Five-Hundred-Year History of America’s Hurricanes
