"Don't just count your years, make your years count"
- George Meredith, novelist and poet 

I celebrated a birthday this week. Not a big decade-changer, just an oddball number quietly acknowledged over cake. I must be growing up because as a child, my birthday was all about the number and the gifts (often books). Today, the gifts aren’t as important to me as spending time with the people I care about – but thanks to a program we just launched, they can make a big difference for others.

This year, I’m pledging my birthday to the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation. In a nutshell, I’m asking my friends and family to make a gift to the Library Foundation in lieu of a gift for me – it’s that simple, and I still get the cake! I hope you’ll consider pledging your birthday too.

Your Library is also growing. You may have heard reports of a reimagined Main Library as a cornerstone of Uptown's Sixth and Tryon Vision Plan. Your Library has always been about so much more than books, and we are thrilled to build on over one hundred years of service as we adapt to meet the needs of the next century. It's a turning point for the Library and our community, and we look forward to celebrating many more milestones together.

Thank you, as always, for your support.


Jenni Gaisbauer, CFRE
Executive Director