Around 2010, the Storey County Library Board voted to disband; they asked Debby Loesch-Griffin (who attended the meeting) if Community Chest would take over the library. She deferred, saying instead that CCI would be stewards of the collection until a permanent site could be found. That started many moves of books with the help of multiple volunteers. Finally, Squeek LaVake offered to have the books stored at her facility where they remained until the new library building was built.
In the interim, Nancy Cummings, the former Washoe County Library Director, recruited fifteen librarians to thin the collection and make it viable once again. The collection went from nearly 500,000 items to about a third of that. When the second phase of the community center was built, that collection was moved upstairs in the new building with dedicated space for a library.
There were many others who helped to make the transition smooth– Storey County staff, CCI staff, many volunteers including Ben and Karen Wesner, Doug Elmer and Bonnie Tuggle, Josh Stanley, and others. Amy Geddes, Lyon County Library Director, stored the excess books in the interim, and the state library team helped with the transition to the permanent site as well. Finally, Storey County has continued to support the library and has returned it to its current vital status.
The above paragraph was written with humble thoughts and dedication of a much bigger project than mere words can describe. Shaun Griffith worked tirelessly visualizing permanent space in the new Community Center and Resource Center to save a library and not just for the sake of storing books. Shaun and Deborah know the library is the “heart of the community” where people gather to learn, explore, and continue the lifetime love of reading, learning and sharing resources. Now with support of the County, Community Chest, Inc. and community partners; we operate as Storey County Community Library in a beautiful Library that is warm and inviting ready to meet the needs of all our Library Patrons.
