Books are starting to pile up again for the Friends of the C.H. Booth Library: Donations are once again being collected for the organization dedicated to providing financial and materials support to the library.

The Friends of the C.H. Booth Library, a 501(c)(3) organization, began accepting donations again on September 2, it announced on August 28, along with the new rules for donating books.

The Friends are receiving donations only on Wednesdays and Saturdays, from 10 to noon, at the volunteer-staffed POD in the library’s rear parking lot at 25 Main Street. No donations are permitted to be brought directly into the library. All volunteers will wear masks, have hand sanitizer available, and maintain safe distancing guidelines. Tax receipts will be available on request, according to the announcement. Items dropped off at any other time or location will be immediately discarded.

“By collecting donations twice weekly in a POD, the Friends is able to ensure that donations are protected from the weather and we’ll be able to move them into the library building after they decontaminate,” explained volunteer Toni Earnshaw in the announcement.

Friends of the C.H. Booth Library, as announced, is also instituting new donation guidelines. The following items will no longer be accepted: encyclopedias and Time-Life books, outdated reference and text books, travel guides, VHS tapes and cassettes, Reader’s Digest books, magazines, and free pamphlets.

“We thank the public for donating good quality books, CDs, DVDs, audio books, LPs, puzzles, and games that we sell at the big annual summer book sale or at the library in the Little Book Store or at the Holiday Sale in December,” noted Earnshaw.

The proceeds from these sales support patron services, acquisitions of books and other materials, programs, online subscriptions, and much more.

For more information and updates, check the Friends’ website at boothbooksale.org. Contact the Friends of C.H. Booth Library at boothbooksale@yahoo.com.

Books Arrive

By the time Newtown resident Moe Trivers pulled up to the POD in the C.H. Booth Library’s parking lot — about one hour into the first day of donations, September 2 — Friends of the C.H. Booth Library volunteers were already busy separating and organizing books.

Trivers offered her donations and the next car pulled up to do the same. Velma Kovacs of Brookfield had bags of items to hand over.

“We are so pleased to see that donors are bringing only the items that we are currently able to accept,” Kaiser said, while standing in the POD out of the day’s rain. “We so appreciate their generosity and care for the Newtown library.”

Earnshaw said in an e-mail on September 2, “Thanks to all who donated books and other items. Some of those items will be available for sale by the Friends at the [Newtown] Farmers Market as early as Tuesday, September 8, from 2 pm to 6:30 pm. All proceeds benefit the library.”

Friends of the C.H. Booth Library has a stand at the Newtown Farmers Market, which runs Tuesdays through October 27 this year, on the Fairfield Hills campus. More information about the Newtown Farmers Market is available online at newtownctfarmersmarket.com.

Browse The Library By Appointment

The first day of book donations for the Friends of the C.H. Booth Library coincided with the library opening to the public by appointment for browsing. As previously reported in The Newtown Bee, C.H. Booth Library reopened for patrons, by appointment, Wednesday, September 2. The library had been closed to the public since March 14 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To make an appointment for browsing or computer use, call us at 203-426-4533 or e-mail the library at help@chboothlibrary.org. The library will accept reservations up to one day in advance. Those with an appointment should wait outside the library at the main entrance (the sliding doors) until five minutes prior to their scheduled time slot. Upon entering the building, they will be checked in at the greeting area.

Following the first library browsing appointments on September 2, C.H. Booth Library Director Douglas Lord said in a phone interview that the morning went “really well.” Roughly 20 people had used the morning’s appointment time to use library services, mostly by appointment, with two “walk-ups,” which the library leaves spaces for on purpose.

Lord also said the library’s children’s programming began again this week, with programs offered outside.

“We’re very fortunate to have a very good staff who can roll with anything,” said Lord.

The library’s curbside service is still available Monday through Friday, 10 am to 4 pm. Its patio grab-and-go service is also available Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, noon to 4 pm, Thursdays from noon to 7 pm, and Saturdays from 10 am to 1 pm, all depending on the weather.

More information about the library’s programs and services is available at chboothlibrary.org.