$32K Grant Awarded To Westfield Memorial Library

WESTFIELD, NJ — The Westfield Memorial Library recently received a grant from the Union County Board of Commissioners totaling $32,067.10 as part of the Union County Commissioners' "Empowering Union County Libraries" initiative.

The initiative, spearheaded by County Commissioner Bette Jane Kowalski, is part of this year’s Chairman’s theme of "Building a Stronger Union County."

According to Union County Commissioner Chairman Sergio Granados, the grant represents a significant milestone in the county’s commitment to enhancing services provided by local libraries, ensuring continued access to valuable resources for all constituents.

The primary objective of the grant is to facilitate the library’s participation in the Libraries of Middlesex Automation Consortium (LMxAC), which enables patrons to borrow materials, such as books, e-books, e-audiobooks, music, movies and magazines, from 45 area libraries.

The library migrated to the system in May.

LMxAC manages a more sophisticated catalog than what the library previously used. It is able to search for items in all the LMxAC libraries, and it facilitates the process of obtaining materials from other libraries much more quickly and easily

"The Board is grateful to the Union County Commissioners for their generous grant," said Michelle Habayeb, President of the Library Board of Trustees, who received the award on behalf of the library at the September meeting of the Union County Commissioners. "This grant enabled the library to join LMxAC, greatly enriching our residents' access to a world of books."

"I’m delighted to see the Commissioners’ support of cooperative library services in Union County," said Allen McGinley, Library Director. "Increasing collaboration among neighboring libraries will allow us to expand services for our residents, while making more efficient use of taxpayer resources."

— Westfield Memorial Library