Friends Book Sale volunteers Bob Stolusky and Lana K. Both enjoyed helping organize
the donated books for this fall’s event, with more books donated than in recent years.
“Once you open up those boxes, a whole world opens up to you,” Bob said.
by Beth Offenbacker
Judy Arnheim was one of the team of 96 volunteers behind the success of the Friends of the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Library’s September Used Book Sale. Now a five-year volunteer for the event, Judy shared that part of its magic is connecting with other book lovers across the area.
“I love meeting the people,” she said. The tri-annual Book Sale is a cherished community tradition, typically occurring in September, January, and May. It draws large crowds of all ages from Clifton Park, Halfmoon, and other area towns and villages.
Now with the popularity of e-readers, Judy also is pleased to see people continuing to buy physical books. “The more books I see, the happier I am.” Perhaps most of all, she is dedicated to the library’s ongoing viability, a theme repeated by many of the volunteers interviewed for this story. “Anything that can keep the library going,” Judy said.
The Friends’ Book Sale, now in its 28th year, helps find new homes for books donated by community members, with the proceeds supporting activities and resources that supplement the library’s budget. These “extras” include programs like the popular museum pass program, literacy kits, and other resources serving community needs. CPH Friends, as the organization is known, is an independent nonprofit that supports the library’s mission and programs, and the Book Sale is one of its many ongoing initiatives.
This year’s fall Book Sale had a larger volume of donations than in recent years. “There were more books than usual,” one volunteer confided. “We even had to have books in the hallway” when sorting of the books began. Parking in the library lot on the first day of the sale also was reported as being tight.
The organizing of the books is a major pre-event activity for Book Sale volunteers, which include a range of ages from high schoolers to senior community members. More than 140 volunteer slots are open, generally lasting two to three hours each, said Lanna Langlois, one of the three co-presidents of the CPH Friends. Lanna has co-chaired the Book Sale for the last five years, along with Wilma Jozwiak, another co-president of CPH Friends. She noted that they feel very fortunate that a majority of the volunteers return sale after sale.
Throughout the year, a team of volunteers sort donated books. Any books deemed not saleable are either discarded, recycled, or placed on a “free books” shelf in the library’s lobby, depending on their condition. Books to be included in the sale are sorted by type and either shelved or boxed.
The day before the sale opens to the public, volunteers haul and sort boxes and boxes of books. In the main room, non-fiction books are placed on (and under) tables by category (art, history, religion, self-help, cooking, etc.) for ease of browsing by patrons.
An equally large trove of fiction books is organized alphabetically in an adjoining room on wall-to-wall shelves. A large children’s book section is another big draw for attendees, with the books arranged by reading level and type.
Valerie Dechene has been helping at the Book Sale for a couple of years and finds the sale offers something for her, and for her family. She appreciates the selection of history books at the sale, and is drawn to the children’s books for her grandsons, ages nine and six. “One boy loves to read,” she said.
Like many others, Larry and Patty Kirshenbaum are long-time book sale volunteers and they enjoy volunteering together. “We love the library,” Larry said, and they visit at least two to three times a week. Other Friends’ activities they volunteer for include the Craft Give and Take and Plant Expo events. Patty teaches with the library’s English Language Learners program as well.
Each Book Sale welcomes new volunteers too, including local students. As the Book Sale prepared to get underway on the Thursday before opening, Shenendehowa student Ruchir helped organize books along with his mother, Dipti. Ruchir shared that he’s part of Engage Us, a Shenendehowa group for seventh to tenth graders that has a community service requirement.
“I came to add to my hours,” Ruchir said, sharing that he was enjoying getting a preview of the books for sale, a perk for Book Sale volunteers. Birding field guides, mythology, and photography books are Ruchir’s favorites among non-fiction books, and he also likes fiction books.
Dipti, Ruchir’s mom, said she was there to support him in increasing his volunteer hours. “We come every year,” she said of the Book Sale. Wanting to see how the Book Sale is organized behind the scenes led them both to getting involved this year.
Bob Stolusky is one of the longer-term volunteers affiliated with the event, and is celebrating about 10 years of helping make the sale happen. He’s a regular user of the library and a big fan of the Book Sale. “It’s an excellent fundraiser that provides well-needed services that benefit the community.”
Bob recognized the planning, organization, and leadership that goes into each Book Sale. “Lanna [Langlois] and Wilma [Jozwiak] do a fantastic job,” he said. “The logistics may not seem monumental, but they are.” Wednesday and Thursday are internal workdays, prior to the sale days of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. “There is constant curating of the books,” Bob said, and “the amount of material that comes in is mind-boggling.”
Fellow volunteer Lana K. has worked the Book Sale for a few seasons now. “It’s nice to see people in different places who like books,” she said. And the organizing of the donations does a “little bit to satisfy my OCD,” Lana added with a smile. “While I put them out, I can look at them.” Her favorite tables at the sale are those with art books and language books.
Back in the Fiction room, Marla Myers was busy taking hardcover and paperback books from boxes and placing them in order on the shelves. “This is my third sale participating,” she said, and the first one where she’s been involved in setting up. “Other years, I came and bought bags full of books.”
Her experience as a dedicated Book Sale customer was proving valuable as a volunteer in the Fiction room. As she pulled an extensive printout of an Excel document out of her bag, Marla shared that she has a twin sister and her sister also is very organized. “We love reading, and I’m always looking for books for her and for me.” The printout contained an alphabetical list of the books the sisters want to read, a second part of the list tracks books they’ve previously read, and a third section highlights those they have on hand that are waiting to be read.
Marla admitted that the many boxes of books that volunteers unpack can seem overwhelming at first glance, but like other volunteers at the sale, she was undaunted. “I come from a long line of doing garage sales,” she said.