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New mural adorns Island Branch Library

New mural adorns Island Branch Library

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Anna Maria Island, Community News.

HOLMES BEACH – Heads are turning as people drive past the Island Branch Library, 5701 Marina Drive, after the recent addition of a colorful mural that stretches the length of the west side of the library. The mural depicts an undersea reading adventure where a diver enjoys a book with a curious octopus, fish and even a manatee eager to learn.

The mural was painted by Matt McAllister at Matt McAllister Art, and funding for the project came from the Friends of the Island Library, who held a highly successful jewelry sale in March of this year that raised enough funds to get the work done.

“The Friends and library staff, especially Aileen Valdez, library supervisor, worked with Matt to develop a design that would highlight a young reader surrounded by books and sea life, including a manatee, the logo for Manatee County Public Library System,” Jan Riggs, president of the Friends of the Island Library, said in an email to the Sun. “Once designed, the mural was approved by both library administrators and Manatee County commissioners.”

Riggs added that the mural will serve in another way by bringing local corporations, businesses and residents together to develop a focused fund for the Island library and staff. Details about this endeavor will be released in the fall.

Jewelry sale success for Island Library

Jewelry sale success for Island Library

Written by Jason Schaffer on . Posted in Clubs, Entertainment, Events.

HOLMES BEACH – Thanks to the efforts of the Friends of the Island Library, significant funds will go to help the Island Branch Library and those who use it, raised at an event that couldn’t have happened without the generosity of many in the community.

“This is the first-ever jewelry sale that we’ve had,” said Julie Perry, a member of the Friends of the Island Library and the chairperson of the jewelry sale committee. “It’s all via donations from the community, so without the community support, we couldn’t support our Island library.”

The March 10-11 sale featured deals on jewelry including necklaces, bracelets, rings, watches, earrings and more for reasonable prices ranging from $1 to $10. All the items for sale were donated by people in the community so all the money raised could go to projects related to the library.

“The reason we support this is because libraries run on such a small and tight budget,” Perry said. “With help from the Friends, the added value is funding programs for kids and adults, new furniture, craft supplies, equipment, beautification projects and other things that add value to our wonderful libraries.”

The Friends send a special “thank you” to the many who donated their jewelry and time to make the sale a success. Although the total amount of money raised from the sale is not yet known, they said they were very pleased with the turnout and expect this to be an annual fundraiser.