Cooper honored for 23 years of service
THOMAS – Mountaintop Library employees, volunteers, Friends of the Library, trustees and residents gathered Saturday to celebrate 35 years of service to the community. Also, the Library recognized one of its volunteers for dedicating 23 years of helping the library.
Patricia L. Cooper, of Davis, was honored for her service to the Mountaintop Library. Cooper received a plaque from the West Virginia Library Association, presented by Mountaintop Library Director Ivonne Martinez.
“In October, four of us attended the W.Va. Library Association Conference,” Martinez said. “We presented our pick for recognition and it was accepted unanimously.”
The award honors Cooper for her professionalism as a volunteer and officer. The award also named her as a champion for the Mountaintop Library.
“My mother would be proud,” Cooper said as she accepted the plaque. “Thank you.”
Cooper was surrounded by her sisters during Saturday’s events – Veronica Staron, Alice Tekavec and Jeannette Ware. She said she was very surprised to receive the award.
“The library has representatives from different sections of the county, and I was from Canaan,” Cooper said. “My husband and mother passed away and I wanted to resign, but education was such an important element for my mother, so I decided not to resign. I am so glad I did not resign.
Library Director Ivonne Martinez said the group is taking a page from their past to build the future.
“Many of you know, we are trying to build a new library,” Martinez said. “It is part of our 10-year plan.”
Display boards at the open house showed many of the accomplishments of the Mountaintop Library in the last seven years.
“It’s all been very good,” Martinez said. “We have completed great work.”
Joan Armbruster, president of the Friends of the Library, said Saturday’s Open House was put together by the trustees and Martinez to celebrate the library.
“The Friends of the Library are involved with raising money for the library’s new building – that is our main focus these days,” Armbruster said. “We are very proud that we did so well in the Run For It.”
Armbruster said another big part of the Friends is the volunteer services they can provide to help Martinez with the Mountaintop Library.
“We volunteered to make cookies for today’s event,” Armbruster said. “We volunteer to come up and help – during Ivonne’s seven years with us, she has done so much.”
Armbruster said the Mountaintop Library is clean and fresh, and said Martinez is helping bring awareness of the library to community members and businesses.
“The beauty of it is our relationship with the community,” Armbruster said. “When we knock on doors and say we are having a garden party or a silent auction, folks in the community help support our efforts and help with donations for our cause.”
Other ways the Friends help the library include reading to Head Start students on Fridays.
Additional information about the Mountaintop Library is available by calling 304-463-4582.
