Alachua County Library District
Special events heighten community awareness of the Foundation and its purpose and goals. The Foundation holds its own events and sometimes participates in other community events.
Thirtieth Anniversary Foundation Meeting
Chair Bill Burger welcomed more than fifty Foundation Associates, Board members, guests, trustees, elected officials, and members of the Library staff to the Foundation’s Annual Meeting celebrating its Thirtieth Anniversary and held at Headquarters Library on Sunday, September 22, 2019.
Jean Chalmers, former Gainesville City Commissioner and Mayor Commissioner, was the guest speaker, addressing the topic of “Gainesville Highlights from the Last Sixty Years,” with an emphasis 
on the earliest thirty years of that time. In keeping with the anniversary celebration, the table decorations were stacks of major books published in 1989 (and still available from the Library) and strings of (fake) pearls, the symbol of thirtieth anniversaries. ACLD Director Shaney Livingston provided her overview of District accomplishments over the past year and plans for the future. She also thanked the Foundation for its continued supporting contributions to SnuggleUp Centers and Teen Areas at branch libraries. Director Livingston also introduced the ACLD staff members in attendance, including the new Facilities/Safety Services Administrator Michael McLaughlin.
Bill Burger presented the Chair’s Annual Report and Brian Gendreau provided the Treasurer’s Report. Membership Committee member Maggie MacDonald recognized the new Associates. Barbara Scott, after first recognizing Tom Rider, who was the Foundation’s first chair, led the election of Officers and new Board of Directors members, which resulted in the unanimous acceptance of those nominated. Elected to new two-year terms were Jon Reiskind as Chair and Mitzi Austin as Vice Chair; Brian Gendreau was re-elected to a two-year term as Treasurer. Eve Ackerman, Bill Burger, Donald Caton, Maggie MacDonald, Howard Rosenblatt, and Mary White were re-elected to three-year terms on the Board. Maggie MacDonald has one remaining year of her term as Secretary of the Foundation.
RECEPTION & CELEBRATIONS
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2023 Annual Katherine’s Tree Award Ceremony
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Sunday, March 12th, was a special day for the Foundation, for after two years of not being able to hold its annual reception to recognize 
Katherine’s Tree leaf recipients, it was again able to do so. Thus, it recognized both 2021 and 2022 leaf recipients as well as the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Guy Hudspeth Award recipients. After refreshments at 5:30, ACLD Director Shaney Livingston welcomed the attendees. ACLD Foundation Chair Marilyn Tubb then spoke about how the Tree honored the memory of her daughter Katherine in a talk entitled “A Legacy of Love for Reading: The History of Katherine’s Tree.”
The program then turned to the recognition of leaf recipients, starting with the Guy Hudspeth Awardees. The Award is named for retired librarian 
(and its first recipient in 2007) Guy Hudspeth and is sponsored by the Kosman Foundation to honor an outstanding Library District employee annually. The fourteenth and fifteenth Annual Awardees were first recognized: Otto Pleil for his invaluable leadership of the eBranch during the pandemic, and Guylene Morris Resue for working to ensure that the Hawthorne Branch is integrated into the community. Librarian Patricia Carr received the sixteenth annual Award for her work with the District’s Conversational English Program.
Each year, the Friends of the Library recognizes some of its outstanding volunteers by placing leaves on the tree in their honor. The 2021 Honorees were Stephanie and Mark Olson, Ellen Bridges Hulslander, and Hope and Tony White (and in memory of Hope). The 2022 Honorees were Jonathan van Blokland and Oebm Bendrah.
Friends and family were recognized for having funded ten additional leaves on the Tree. The Foundation Board provided a leaf in memory of Julia Barth Reiskind, wife of past Foundation Chair Jon Reiskind. Board member Mitzi Austin and husband Wayne Smith gave three leaves to honor son J. Victor
Austin and grandchildren Reece C. and Matilda Austin in memory of their grandmother/great-grandmother Matilda Cockrell. They gave a fourth leaf in honor of their daughter-in-law Jessica Giuli Austin. Board Treasurer Brian Gendreau and his wife Linda gave a leaf 
in memory of his mother Jean Gendreau. Board member and past chair Pushpa Kalra and family members gave a leaf in memory of her husband Satya Paul Kalra. Tony White gave a leaf in honor of his daughter Skye and her husband John Maze. Jane Brockman and family friends gave two leaves in memory of her husband Tom Rider, who was the Foundation’s first chairperson.
Further refreshments followed, with current donors and recipients then retiring to the main floor for individual and group photographs at the Katherine’s Tree site. The eighteen leaves represent gifts of $36,000 to the Foundation to help advance its support of our outstanding Library District.
However, for reasons beyond the Foundation’s control, Mr. Dickens will not be appearing live and in person for the 2012 Gala. But the ACLD Foundation won’t let that stop them! In honor of Mr. Dickens' 200th Birthday, the ACLD Foundation is celebrating with a 'non-event' ... Donors will be asked to think back to the first Dickens story they experienced: A Tale of Two Cities? Great Expectations? A Christmas Carol? Oliver Twist? Perhaps it was a copy checked out from a public library, lovingly worn and handled by countless readers ..."
2013 -- JANE AUSTEN -- Celebrating the 200th Anniversary of the publication of Pride and Prejudice -- "If the author could join us for our Gala there would be rout cakes and gingerbread, bread and butter and jam tarts ... Alas, Miss Austen cannot join us at our Gala in person, but you can brew yourself a cup of fine tea and relax in the comfort of your own home with a good book. We know you would fit in with our non-event because as Jane said, 'My idea of good company is the company of clever well-informed people who have a good deal of conversation.'"
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