Friends of the Talkeetna Library

Were a group of concerned residents of the Upper Susitna Valley who claim the Talkeetna Public Library as our library "home." Since 2003 our purpose has been to ensure that residents of our area are aware of the resources and services available to them through the library and also to provide a liaison between the community and the library staff. Additionally, our purpose has been to advocate for programs to change lives and build community in the Upper Susitna Valley.

Since our new building opened in 2015, the money raised continues to go toward our commitment to ensure that the new library will be what our communities have asked for, and that the programming and resources available help build a community of readers and leaders.

The needs of our community are at the forefront of what we do.

In 2018 we have used funds to present programming for children and teens to include Summer Reading Program puppet presentations, teen and tween book2movie nights, and a K-3 mentor reading program. With the aid of these funds we supported a summer Literary Camp for kids heading into 3rd grade. We collaborate with other non-profits to ensure that our programming is a result of community needs and desires. For example, to provide a summer lunch program during summer reading, we collaborated with four other local non-profits to provide lunches to feed bodies and books and programs to feed souls. Another example is the mentor reading program. In addition to four other local non-profits, we collaborate with the elementary school and members of the community to give each participating child a reading partner in another age bracket. We purchased a piano that can be used at the library by those who want to take lessons, but cannot afford their own instrument, we provide funding for a Kids Yoga program.

In order to stabilize funding for such programs and to expand their reach we started an endowment fund through the Alaska Community Foundation to keep our library programs healthy and vibrant.