Library Trustees

Library Trustees:

David Fream - term expires March 2025

Brendan Johnson - term expires March 2026

Jack Parnham - term expires March 2027

Library Annual Report 2023

A Note from the Board of Trustees:

We are very lucky to have such a dedicated staff that has been able to maintain the library services after Carl left at the end of 2022. The board embarked on a director search immediately, which proved to be very competitive and limited on candidates in the seacoast area for a part-time position. We want to thank Brittney Thompson for stepping up and taking on the Interim Assistant Directors Position and helping us through the transition of finding a new Director. After months of discussions with Brittney, the BOT is excited to announce that Brittney will be taking on the position of Library Director! The BOT could not be more pleased with Brittney and the whole staff.

To support Brittney and help the BOT work on a strategic five-year plan, the BOT is consulting with Scott Campbell, Assistant Director of the Wiggin Memorial Library. Together we sent out a town-wide survey this fall and gathered data to help provide insights into the town’s perspective on all things related to the library. The goal of the strategic plan is to help the BOT and the town develop a plan to support the needed staffing resources for the library now and into the next five years.

As part of this strategic initiative, and with the continued support from the Friends of the Library, the BOT is planning a significant interior upgrade and improved services. New carpet, paint and circulation desk are planned at this time. The BOT feels strongly that a great environment for our staff and patrons will continue to make the Paul Memorial Library a cornerstone of our community!

Sincerely,

PML Board of Trustees

Director’s Report

2023 marks a year of transition for the Library in more ways than one. We said a fond farewell to our former director Carl Heidenblad who retired at the end of 2022.

After several months of searching, we hired Marie Smyth as our new Library Assistant in August. She brings a wonderful enthusiasm for reading and librarianship and is currently working towards her Master’s degree in Library Science. She hit the ground running, kickstarting our Pre-school Story Times, which had to take a hiatus while we were short staffed. Kids and parents are excited to hear her stories each week and work together on a craft. We are excited to see her grow in her role in the coming year.

The Library Board and staff continued to successfully minimize the impact of COVID-19 with regard to library services in 2023, with only 2 days of closure at the end of December. We want to thank the Friends of the Library for purchasing two HEPA air purifiers this year set up in the main room and children’s area that further reduce risk for our patrons and improve overall air quality in the library. The library is also pleased we’ve been able to provide free at-home rapid tests to our community through the Seacoast Public Health Network and generous donations from Newfields Public Health Officer, Dr. Bobby Kelly.

We are excited to share that library usage continues to trend upward as we recover from the pandemic’s ongoing impact.

We welcomed 4,663 visitors to the library—an increase of 23% since 2022. And 1,276 people attended programs in 2023—a 38% increase since last year!

Paul Memorial Library also loaned more than 8,404 items. We are seeing more and more digital borrowing through the Libby and hoopla apps, with 4,309 titles loaned for a combined total of 14,206 titles borrowed through PML. A special thanks to the Friends of the Library for sponsoring hoopla.

For programming, we brought back crowd favorites like Quarterly Puzzle Swaps and Drive-In Movies this fall. Patrons also enjoyed the ever-popular Take-Home Crafts prepared monthly by our resident artist Cori Caputo. Paul Memorial Library hosted 81 programs in 2023, up from 54 in 2022–a 50% increase in offerings.

2023 Highlights

• Families of all ages had fun decorating Valentine’s cookies and Halloween cookies in February and October.
   
• Feb. 22. We welcomed back Sheryl Faye for a performance of Ruth Bader Ginsburg in celebration of Women’s History Month in March.
• The library collaborated with the Newfields Garden Club to serve as a collection station for plastic recycling. Over several months, the Garden Club collected 1,000 lbs of plastic and converted it into two Trex benches for the Woodland Path on Summer Street.
   
• May 10th, we hosted local author Gale Carey for a talk “Walking France” on her experience hiking the Chemin de Jacques.
   
• May 19. The NH Astronomical Society joined us for a presentation on what is visible in the night sky and set up telescopes at the Raynes Farm field for viewing.
   
• June 3. We kicked off our Summer Reading Program in June with a fantastic show by magician Robert Clarke.
   
• June 17. Local Newfields resident–and keeper of the Boston Cane–delighted us with a talk about his experiences working and serving at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard for the past 79 years.
   
• This July a group of intrepid teens and tweens were led through a Dungeons and Dragons adventure with Dungeon Master Jason Hall. (All survived!)
   
• July 22. Mike Piazza and his High-Flying Dogs entertained with impressive tricks and acrobatics–and plenty of participation from the crowd.
   
• August 12. The Friends of the Library sponsored a wonderful outdoor concert on the lawn with a performance by musical duo Hungrytown.
   
• October 31, our librarians scared the pants off Newfields for the 5th annual Haunted Library, featuring the Carn-Evil theme. Did you survive the haunted library?
   
• Nov. 4 local herbalist Jenn Demers led a workshop on beginner tea blending, sponsored by the Friends of the Library.
   
• November thru December PML collected the community’s holiday lights to recycle. Together we recycled over 50 gallons of lights this season.
   
• We ended the year strong with a BIG Gingerbread House workshop. We had so many families sign up we had to move locations to the Town Hall!

Library Statistics for 2023

A successful library always results from teamwork. Our successes in 2023 are due to the efforts of the Friends of the Library of Newfields, the Library Board of Trustees, our friends at the Newfields Elementary School, library assistants Cori and Marie, as well as the continued support from the community and local officials.

On a personal note, I also want to give a special thanks to our patrons for their patience and support through these transitions while we were short staffed and as I am learning and growing into this new role. Your encouragement and support are so appreciated, and I am grateful to serve such a friendly community. 

All of us associated with the library look forward to serving you, your families, friends and neighbors in 2024!

Respectfully submitted,

Brittney Thompson, PML Director