Library News

We rounded out the end of our Fiscal Year in June 2024. Looking back on the year, we wanted to share some of the highlights, including all of the fabulous things we were able to accomplish with the help of our dedicated patrons. 

Not only did our wonderful new Library Director, Traci Glass, join us in May, but we also increased our event attendees to 31,994, opened a 20th deposit collection at a local senior living facility, tripled our impressions across social media, and so much more! 

by Carol Grant, Past President, WDM Library Board of Trustees

by Jean Fajen, WDM Library Board of Trustees 

by Craig Long, Secretary, WDM Library Board of Trustees

by Bryan Myers, WDM Library Board of Trustees

Franklin D Roosevelt said, “I have an unshaken conviction that democracy can never be undermined if we maintain our library resources and a national intelligence capable of utilizing them.”  This still rings true today; the quality of our community in total is directly correlated to the quality of our public library and I, though not a librarian, take a direct part in maintaining that quality as a library Trustee.

by Melissa Gillespie, WDM Library Board of Trustees

by Ray Seidelman, Secretary, WDM Library Board of Trustees

Talking with a friend soon after I was appointed to the West Des Moines Library Board of Trustees in 2019, I expressed how excited I was to serve such a dynamic community institution.  He met my enthusiasm with, “that’s great…but do they still have libraries?”. 

"A library outranks any other one thing a community can do to benefit its people."  Andrew Carnegie