(Chelsea Update would like to thank Virginia Krueger for the information in this story.)
Chelsea District Library (CDL) staff and volunteers were excited to gather at our annual Volunteer Appreciation Party on Saturday, Dec. 2.
At this celebration, CDL honored two individuals who have been particularly generous in their service to the library. The awards originated in 1992 as a small way to recognize the enormous gratitude CDL has for those individuals who help to further its mission. These dedicated individuals provide great value to the library by doing work above and beyond the normal scope of the CDL staff.
This year CDL celebrates the services of 2023 Friend of the Year David Griffiths and 2023 Volunteer of the Year Dan Kaminsky.
David and his wife Marion moved to Chelsea in 2017 after his 40-year career at Hillsdale College as the theatre department’s scenic designer and technical director.
He said, “Once settled, I was looking for a volunteer opportunity and heard the library was a possibility, what better for a lifelong reader? … Books have always been a source of joy for me. As Groucho Marx once said – ‘Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend – inside of a dog, it’s too dark to read anyway.’”
Griffiths has volunteered his time with the Friends Used Book Sale since 2018. When told of his nomination, he said, “The library was part of my daily work life, researching facts for the classroom and information and images for sets. The plays we produced covered the widest variety of subjects and eras imaginable and libraries provide the information we need for every topic and taste. Libraries supported me throughout my work life and now it is my turn to support them however I can.”
CDL’s Volunteer of the Year, Dan Kaminsky, has a decades-long service history with CDL. He was part of the successful campaign to form our library district and an incredibly generous donor in our recent efforts to bring Mobile CDL into library services.
He has helped with book sales, deliveries to the homebound, and even served a stint as the library board president. Reflecting on the formation of the district, Dan said, “At the time, I envisioned more books, more room, finally some staff. What happened astounds me now today. The library has become an enormous benefit for our community, with interesting programs, great resources, and helpful knowledgeable staff. It’s a place that everyone in Chelsea can be proud of.”
The staff at CDL could not agree more with this sentiment and gives thanks to all of our wonderful Friends and volunteers. It is with the help of many hands that we are able to engage, inspire, and equip our community.
For information about volunteering, please contact Linda Ballard at 734-475-8732 x202. For more information on becoming a Friend, visit www.friends.chelseadistrictlibrary.org.
About Us: Chelsea District Library (CDL) is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to engage, inspire, and equip through evolving services and resources. CDL currently serves 16,126 residents in the Chelsea library district—City of Chelsea, Lyndon and Sylvan Townships, and the portions of Lima and Dexter Townships within the Chelsea School District. For more information visit www.chelseadistrictlibrary.org.
