
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, May 7, 1993                   TAG: 9305070496
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-1   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY  
SOURCE: RICK LINDQUIST STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RADFORD                                LENGTH: Medium

LIBRARY BREAKS NEW GROUND FOR KIDS

Even as ground was broken Thursday for a new children's wing to Radford's public library, private fund-raising efforts continued so there will be something to put inside when the addition is completed this fall.

Library Director Ann Fisher, Mayor Tom Starnes, Library Board Chairman Fletcher Carter and Jim Durham of the Lamplighters, a volunteer library support group, joined in the groundbreaking ceremony.

Some future beneficiaries of the new wing also got in on the act. A group of preschoolers, fresh from library story time, were issued their own plastic pails and shovels. As their adult counterparts dug up small piles of dirt and sod, the youngsters worked over the soil with their less-effective implements.

Although the city has secured $297,000 in state and local money for the building, some extras in the original proposal had to be cut or put on hold. Contributions to the Lamplighters' building fund still are considerably short of the $100,000 goal set in 1991.

"In one of the worst economic downturns, they've done a superb job coming up with $55,000," Fisher told the gathering.

Jim Durham, who headed the Lamplighters' fund drive, said money continues to arrive, adding that the group actually had collected between $55,000 and $60,000.

"We're not going to stop," he said.

Durham said the children's program has grown over the years and that 300 to 400 youngsters take part in the summer reading program alone.

Inside the library, a building-fund container collects small change from the kids and other patrons.

Fisher said about $11,000 from library fines will go toward new shelves for the addition.

She said she hopes there will be enough money left over to add more parking and improve the library's offices. But for now, she's happy to see the project getting under way.

"This is truly a great day," she said.

Contributions to the Lamplighters' building fund drive go to P.O. Box 2913, Radford, Va. 24143. Donations are tax-deductible.

by CNB