Gala to raise funds for library programs

Community members are invited to the Salt Lake Main Library, 210 E. 400 South, for a special evening of dancing, dining and helping raise money for a good cause.

The city library is holding its fourth gala celebration, themed "Red, White and Read All Over," Saturday, Feb. 10, from 8 p.m. to midnight. The cost is $100 per ticket. Participants can dance to the music of The Wilson Project, enjoy hors d'oeuvres, wine, champagne and dessert, and bid on one-of-a-kind silent auction items. Black-tie dress is optional.

One of the main purposes of the gala is to emphasize the library's role as a community center.

"The library has a long tradition of wanting to do things that underscore the fact that we think the library is so important to the community and belongs to the community," library director Nancy Tessman said. "We're amazed at how many people come in the building every day and how important it is to them.... The community connection and idea of having a celebration are important."

Some of the silent auction items gala patrons can bid on include a private candlelit dinner on the rooftop garden of the Main Library; a copy of the seventh and final Harry Potter book, personally delivered to your home at midnight on the day it's released; a front-row seat in the library director's fifth-floor office balcony for the Days of '47 Parade; and a children's sleepover at the Main Library with pizza, storytelling and more.

Colleen McLaughlin, city library community affairs manager, said one of the most enjoyable things about planning the gala has been seeing the creativity of staff members in coming up with items for the silent auction.

"They've come up with fabulous ideas of what to auction," she said. "It's been very nice to see how generous people are or how creative the staff is."

Ginny McOmber, manager of the browsing library, said most of the auction items are unique and can't be purchased elsewhere. All the tenants housed at Library Square donated something for the auction. The Library Store donated the Harry Potter book, Art at the Main donated two original paintings and Night Flight Comics contracted with a cartoonist to auction off the opportunity for the winning bidder to be featured in a comic book.

McLaughlin said they haven't set a dollar goal of how much the city library hopes to raise with the gala, but they would like to get enough funding to continue some of their most successful programs including the Dewy Lecture Series and puppetry festival, and to fund a comic book conference next fall.

The gala will also serve as a celebration for the library's successes this year, which include being named Library of the Year by the Library Journal and being featured in an "Archie" comic.

"We've really had a nice few years here since opening the library," Tessman said. "We want to celebrate that the library has been pretty successful."

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E-mail: twalquist@desnews.com