Internal News - The Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library

15Jul, 2024

24-Hour Donor Challenge Set for October 23

The Friends’ second annual 24-Hour Donor Challenge will take place on Wednesday, October 23 as part of National Friends of Libraries Week. This year’s proceeds will benefit the 2025 Scottsdale Public Library Summer Reading Program.

Last year’s inaugural event raised over $9,000 through the support of 59 donors. This year we have set a $10,000 fundraising goal.

One of the reasons for last year’s success was the involvement of our three generous matching partners, resulting in $2,000 in matched donations. We are once again looking for matching partners in 2024, which could be individuals or local businesses. Opportunities start at $500.

Be on the lookout for more information about the 24-Hour Donor Challenge (including the link to donate) in the coming months. Thank you for continuing to support lifelong learning.

25Apr, 2024

Friends Receive Nora Roberts Foundation Grant

The Friends are pleased to announce receiving a Nora Roberts Foundation grant in the amount of $3,000 to support Scottsdale Public Library programming.

The mission of the Nora Roberts Foundation is: “As we believe literacy is a human right, we have made supporting literacy organizations our highest priority. In order to create a beautiful, equitable, and safe world, we also support organizations focused on the arts, children, social justice, and the environment.”

This is the first time the Friends has applied for funds from the Nora Roberts Foundation. To see a list of other grant awards received by the Friends, please visit our Grants & Sponsors page.

18Jan, 2024

Birdies for Charity Runs Through February 11

The WM Phoenix Open returns to Scottsdale on February 5, and the Friends is participating in its Birdies for Charity fundraiser for the fourth consecutive year.

This unique fundraiser works like a walk-a-thon, where you pledge a set amount (e.g. a dime) for every birdie scored at the popular golf tournament. Your final donation will be dependent on how many birdies are scored.

There were 1,333 birdies scored at the 2023 WM Phoenix Open, so a $.10 pledge would translate to a $133.30 donation.

There are a few reasons why we like this fundraiser so much:

The organizer Thunderbirds Charities covers all transaction fees, including credit card processing. This means the Friends will receive 100% of your donation.
Thunderbirds Charities also provides a 10 percent matching bonus on all funds once we receive $500. .So your $100 donation is actually $110.

To participate in Birdies for Charity, visit tinyurl.com/splbirdies2024 and select “Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library” when prompted for your charity. All pledges must be received by 5pm on Sunday, February 11.

20Nov, 2023

Friends Launch Custom T-Shirts Store

You can now show off your library pride by purchasing one of the new Friends’ T-shirts through our online store.

Friends Shirt Designs — *Friends custom T-shirt design*s

Each of the four shirt designs includes a library slogan, such as “If Lost, Please Return Me to the Library” or “I’m With the Banned.”

They are available in five different colors, adult and youth size, and short sleeve or long sleeve.

The shirts are selling for $25 ($30 for long sleeve), and all proceeds will benefit Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library.

We are hoping to sell at least 200 shirts across all four designs.

The Friends is partnering with Bonfire to produce and sell these high-quality shirts. To purchase, please visit https://tinyurl.com/FSPLMerch.

They also make great Holiday gifts for the book lovers in your life.

21Oct, 2023

First 24-Hour Donor Challenge Brings in Over $9K

The results are in from our first 24-Hour Donor Challenge, and we were able to raise $9,074 through the support of 59 donors.

The fundraiser took place on October 18 as part of National Friends of Libraries Week. All proceeds raised will benefit the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten Program.

Our original goal was to raise $5,000, in addition to $2,000 in matching donations. That goal was met within 13 hours, and the extra money raised will provide even more funding for this program.

The Friends would like to thank all of this year’s donors, and extend a special thank you to our three matching donors: Arcadia Pediatric Dental, John Berry, and Taste It Tours.

Stay tuned for news on the 2024 24-Hour Donor Challenge.

8Mar, 2023

Arizona Cardinals Fund Summer Reading Buddies

Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library would like to thank Arizona Cardinals Charities for donating $5,000 toward the Summer Reading Buddies program in 2023.

The program is designed to mitigate the “Summer Slide,” the loss of reading and writing skills over summer vacation that delays learning during the new school year.

The target audience for this program is 30 to 40 first to fourth graders in South Scottsdale. It last ran in 2019, providing six weeks of services for an average of 22 students.

The money will be used to purchase new Chromebook laptops to incorporate a technology component during summer reading. Since the program is volunteer-led, costs are restricted to technology, subscriptions, supplies, and refreshments.

You can find dates for this program on the Scottsdale Public Library website. To learn more about programs funded by the Friends, visit our Programs page.

3Jan, 2023

Birdies for Charity is Back

Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library is once again participating in Birdies for Charity in partnership with the WM Phoenix Open and Thunderbirds Charities on February 6-12.

Phoenix Open Golfer — *The popular 16th green at TPC Scottsdale generates many birdies every year*

This fundraiser works just like a walk-a-thon, except instead of pledging for every mile completed, you pledge a set amount (as low as $.01) for every birdie scored by a golfer at this year’s tournament.

With over 1,300 expected birdies, putting in your two cents will still generate plenty of money for the Friends (1,500 birdies at a $.02 pledge would equal a $30 donation). You can also pledge a flat amount.

This is one of our favorite fundraisers for the year, for a few reasons:

All transaction fees (including credit card processing) are covered by Thunderbirds Charities, meaning whatever you donate is received in its entirety
Thunderbirds Charities offers a 10 percent bonus if a charity receives at least $500, so we can receive extra money based on having more donors

To participate in Birdies for Charity, visit tinyurl.com/splbirdies2023 and select “Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library” when prompted for your charity. All pledges must be received by 5pm on February 13.

30Oct, 2022

2022 Spirit of Literacy Award Winners Announced

Please join us in congratulating the 2022 Spirit of Literacy Award (SOL) winners: Peggy Sharp Chamberlain, Phillip Payne, Mariko Whelan, and the Literary Society of the Southwest (LSSW). The awards will be presented on Saturday, November 5.

Since 2002, the SOL Awards recognize significant contributions to support libraries and literacy in Scottsdale by individuals, corporations, foundations, and other entities. The Friends Board of Directors selects the winners annually.

Sharp Chamberlain was a six year member and former Chair of the Scottsdale Library Board. She also served three years on the Friends Board of Directors and re-launched its membership program, in addition to providing authors for children’s programs at the library.

Payne is the owner and artist-in-residence at Anticus Fine Art Gallery/Independent Bookstore in Old Town Scottsdale. He hosts author presentations and book clubs, and has partnered with the Friends and LDV Winery on three art, book, and wine pairings during 2022.

Whelan is the Early Learning, Youth & Teen Services Coordinator for Scottsdale Public Library. She is a published author who presents at conferences on early learning, and facilitates programs sponsored by the Friends such as Family Read Aloud Nights and Girls in STEM.

LSSW provides grants to community organizations with literacy missions and hosts luncheons with author discussions. LSSW provided funding to the Friends for the SkyRoom renovation and FRAN program.

For the first time, the 2022 SOL award presentations will be open to the public as they will be incorporated into the Scottsdale Library Cardholder Celebration on November 5 at Scottsdale Stadium. The awards will be presented at 6pm.

4Oct, 2022

Friends Funds Bilingual Dial-a-Story Program

The Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library is now funding Scottsdale Public Library’s free Dial-a-Story program, where booklovers can hear a free children’s story in English or Spanish via telephone.

To use the program, call (480) 787-0875, then press 1 for English, or 2 for Spanish. The available story rotates weekly, and includes popular titles like “Sleeping Beauty,” “The Ugly Duckling,” and “The Fox and the Rooster.”

The company that provides the service has been in business for 25 years, and Scottsdale Public Library has offered the free program since 2021. To learn more about great free programs offered by the library, visit https://www.scottsdalelibrary.org.

7Mar, 2022

Friends Sponsors Read Aloud Nights with Title I Schools

The Friends of the Scottsdale Public Library donated $2,630 to support the Family Read Aloud Nights (FRAN) program with four Title I schools in 2022.

FRAN Story Performance — *Scottsdale Public Library staff act out a story for students at Tonalea K-8 school*

The first FRAN event of the year took place March 3 at Tonalea K-8 school in South Scottsdale. It included 178 participants (children and parents) enjoying three stories brought to life through song and dance, costumes, and interaction. This was the largest FRAN crowd in four years.

For these FRAN events, the library partners with a Title I school in Scottsdale, which are located in lower-income areas and provide additional programming to raise the achievement of these students. There are nine Title I schools located in Scottsdale, and the FRAN program rotates among them.

Friends funding for FRAN pays for pizza and drinks for all participants, to ensure parents don’t need to cook a meal that night. Children also take home a free bag and book to encourage reading at home.

The next FRAN event is scheduled for April 5 at Echo Canyon K-8. If you want to help the Friends support programs like FRAN, please consider becoming a Friends member.