What is the Spring Village Community Library Project?

The Spring Villlage Community Library Project was born out of a desire to supplement the educational needs of the community of Spring Village. The goal of the project is to establish a functioning library where villages of all ages and levels of education can come to further their knowledge. This will be a place where ideas can be exchanged and independent research done. The library will have areas for study, internet browsing and places where free form discussions can be conducted. Various books on all disciplines are needed. The Library material will cover any category and at any level one can imagine.

Library Location

The library will be established as part of the Spring Village Training Centre but will operate independently and be accessible to all villagers. The project is currently endorsed by the Spring Village Development Foundation and will consist of a partnership between villagers locally and abroad. It will be located on the northern end of the training Centre (closest to the school) and will consist of two levels. As the planning continues, it will become clearer how the space will be utilized.

Current Objectives

So far, the goal is to run two phases of the project in parallel. One phase is to make the existing book room functional for use in the very near future. This requires shoring up of what is already established, stocking additional items and cataloging them. The other phase is the actual expansion where the additional space can be upgraded for future use.

We need your Support

All villagers worldwide are invited to lend their support through donations of supplies or cash where appropriate. This can be done through your respective library committee. There are book drives already in progress. Please collect books and send them to your local chapter for mass shipment. The committees exist in Spring Village, Canada, U.K. and USA.

Please visit the website frequently for updates.

Thanks to the Morris County Free Library of Morristown NJ for their support in donating hundreds of books for our Library, we are eternally grateful!

Book Drives

Over 2500 Books already delivered!

Click Here to see our Volunteers!

Proposed Library Layout:

Click here to see the Preliminary Layout!!

Type of equipment needed

o        Computers

o        Computer Networking Devices.

o        Scanner (full page)

o        Scanner (Bar code for book check-out)

o        Photo Copiers

o        Printers

o        Audio Visuals

§         CD Player

§         DVD Player

§         VCR (VHS)

o        Library Furniture

§         Tables

§         Desks

§         Chairs

§         Book Shelving

§         Computer Carts

o        Educational Software Packages

Library Committees

1. Jamaica   –Ucal (Gurvin) Gayle, Jeannie Cobern
2. Canada   -Otis(Sawdy) Harvey, Latoya Christian
3. USA       -Rosie Cameron, Jerry Nelson,
   
4. U.K.        -Norrace (Cheryl) Harris, Jacqui Banton-Lawrence, Humroy Whyte

 Highlights

•   We have collected in excess of 5,500 books across chapters and have already sent over 2,500. These are books on numerous subjects and across various disciplines. They cover Art, Science, Mathematics, Languages, Computer Technology, Automotive Technology, Medicine, Psychology, Hotel Management, Political science, History, Children’s readers, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Education, Culinary, Sports, Economics, Nursing, Stock Market, Religion, Business and many more.
• The local chapter is conducting regular meetings and has been coordinating the implementation effort. This involves some of the following:
•  Planning and arranging the facility to make it operational for usage in the near future.
•    Working with the Jamaica Library Association to train their local librarian.
•  Coordination of first floor expansion.

•    The NY chapter continues their book drive and is currently up to over 3000 books. Based on the experience gained from the first shipment this should be a lot smoother.

•      Members of the NY chapter have purchased and delivered software to manage the circulation. The collection will also be searchable on the internet.

•  Basic expansion to create temporary space has been completed and as a result limited library use is taking place with membership at 20 and counting. This is very significant since just about a year ago we were trying to find a location.
• ·         We now have our own librarian, yet another major achievement! Thanks to funding by the CHASE grant this is possible. We are also discussing the possibility of changing the library hours from 8-4pm to 11-7pm to address the needs of the after-school and working population.

•       There are now four Computers in the library. The Librarian uses one and the other three available to patrons.

• The Computers are networked with free high speed internet access provided by Jamaica Broilers. Thank you Broilers!!!!!

•  The SpringVillage team has received a grant of $500,000JA ($7,600US) from the Chase Fund, an organization which helps setup libraries in communities. Kudos to their efforts! This will help kick off the expansion as well as provide funds for computers and library personnel.
•  There are plans to partnering with other external groups with interests in funding libraries. There will also be ongoing fundraising efforts by other chapters.
•  Thanks and all the best to Jeanne and Kenn Miller (U.S. Peace Corps) who were extremely instrumental in helping us get our library off the ground. We will miss them as they return to their homeland.
  

Future plans:

•  The team is working on a few proposed layouts so if anyone is good with architectural programs and would like to volunteer please let us know.
•  Get building estimates.
•  Seek funding for library expansion.

Created By: Jerry & Dahlia Nelson

Library Website

Refurbishing The Library in 2008