Madison Public Library Foundation has 15 established endowment funds, all held at Madison Community Foundation. These funds ensure there is long-term library support for years to come. Donations go directly to the cause of your choosing, and each year, library staff can request an endowment distribution to support new collection materials, programming, furnishings, facility improvements, specific libraries and more. This is the first in a series of e-news stories about our endowments.
In 2021, these funds helped Madison Public Library gain new books while continuing to diversify the selection available to patrons. The library used the Print Book Purchase Fund, which benefits all nine libraries, to buy 198 new editions of titles, satisfy patron requests, and update various subject areas. Of the new titles, 123 were unique, supporting many authors.
The library also tapped the Judy P. Olson Book Discussion Kit Fund to buy 52 book club books, resulting in four entirely new kits and supplemental copies for five more kits combined with books repurposed from other collections — all by BIPOC and/or LGBTQ authors. The Judy P. Olson Book Discussion Kit endowment fund was created upon Judith “Judy” Plaenert Olson’s retirement from her volunteer work with the foundation to grow book club resources.
“The book club kit collection at Madison Public Library is very popular; hundreds of kits are checked out every year to book clubs throughout the South Central Library System,” said Kylee Stoor, the librarian responsible for selecting the book club books. “The endowment funds from the Judy P. Olson fund and Madison Public Library Foundation are so appreciated. They’ve allowed us to add new kits to keep up with what book groups are requesting, which lately has been more books by BIPOC authors and more light reads — I’ve heard from a number of readers that in light of the pandemic and current events, they want to read some good escapist fiction, which we are happy to provide!”
If you’re interested in contributing to an endowment fund, visit our Donate page. You’ll be prompted to select endowment from a list of options.
Thank you to those who have supported endowments funds in the past! They are the building blocks toward creating a bright future for your libraries. Visit our Endowments page to learn more.