“I think the health of our civilization, the depth of our awareness about the underpinnings of our culture and our concern for the future can all be tested by how well we support our libraries.” — Carl Sagan

I like that word, “underpinnings.” It seems rather old-fashioned, and yet by definition, substantial, supportive. Perhaps as the public library might be perceived.

Many of us have sought support at our Nevada County library when making choices, needing information, or facing dilemmas. For example, searching for a job; finding new investment strategies; starting a small business; looking up information on health and wellness issues; gaining computer skills; fixing the plumbing; repairing the car; training the new puppy or teaching the old dog new tricks; learning a new language; seeking the value of old stamps and collectibles;

How to care for, and name, the new baby in the family; getting a head start on that next trip abroad; finding an artist's name and selected works; learning more about local history; locating materials to complete a school report; finding viewpoints to support a debate topic;

Reading award-winning books about historical characters; enjoying the classics or the best sellers; listening to a favorite book; watching an episode from a British television series; escaping into the music of the ages; learning about archaeology, astrology, biology, cartology, cosmetology, genealogy, zoology ...

The list goes on.

The support comes not only from the information and the collections we can access at the library, it also comes from the well-educated, well-qualified staff. Nevada County may be designated a rural community, but I can assure you that the Nevada County Library staff could be matched against many a larger city library staff. It is their education, knowledge, on-going training and diverse backgrounds that support access to such a wide range of materials at our libraries. (There is nothing old-fashioned about this).

“Underpinnings” can also be used to describe the community's support of the library. It is due to community support that the library has been able to grow over the past decade. The unprecedented support shown by the passage of Measures B and C demonstrated the importance of the library in the community.

During the current discussion regarding which proposal will be the best management model for the library system's future, please consider a few factors: Is there really a crisis that warrants changing management of the library, or can the proposals put forth by the county librarian resolve this problem. Also, the library system is not broke, it still has the same resources available, with a temporary reduction in revenue.

Further, our library does not fit the profile of library systems that have chosen to contract with LSSI. LSSI has a monopoly in the area of public library management, and yet they currently hold contracts with only 13 public library systems out of the 9,214 in the United States. Most government entities do not recommend entering into a contract when there is no competition.

LSSI, as a for-profit business, will have different philosophical, economic and political perspectives. What might be the impacts and influences on the management of our public library?

Let's not weaken the underpinnings of the Nevada County Library. As a public library, it should remain a public institution, accountable to the community it serves.

Deb Abbadie lives in Grass Valley.