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Use Carbondale library for family center

  

To the Trustees of Carbondale, I am writing to express my support for converting the library into a Family Enrichment Center that will nourish the families of Carbondale.

As a mother of children and a teacher, I come into contact daily with parents who are looking for nurturing caregivers and environments for their children. Providing much needed infant, toddler, and after-school care in a home-like environment would be such a gift to working parents. Parents are also hungry for some soul food — whether it be a place to sing, knit, or gather together and share the challenges of parenting. The FEC could meet all of these needs.

The FEC would find a perfect home on 4th St. Children could walk from school or the bus stop safely if they were enrolled in the after school program. Parents would find it a convenient location in which to pick up their little ones after a long day’s work.



Lastly, no one can deny the need for a practical arts curriculum that the FEC would offer us. As more of us are disconnected from the natural world and each other as we work and play on screens, we must take up practical work to balance out the effects of this increased screen time. Baking bread, planting seeds — as we find that we can actually bring about something of beauty with our hands, our hearts are renewed, our spirits lifted.

It must be stated here that those that would most benefit from the FEC are least likely to advocate for it. So please treat every letter from a parent as 50 letters. For every one of us that manages to write a letter to you after the kids have been put to bed, the toys put away, the laundry folded, there are at least 50 more who are doing the same, but have fallen asleep from exhaustion and need more support.



Thank you for considering my point of view, and I wish you wisdom throughout this decision making process.

Holly McSwain Richardson

Carbondale


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