May 2022

Dear Friends,

It’s been both an honor and a privilege to support the Howard County Library System through the years, first fundraising through Evening in the Stacks and then being elected to serve on the Friends & Foundation Board of Directors beginning eight years ago. During that time, I served first as Donor Engagement Committee Chair, then as Vice-Chair, and now as Chair.

It’s also been both an honor and a privilege to work to support my very favorite Library System. 

With your help and support, we’ve achieved an incredible amount over the past three years:

• We met and exceeded our Annual Campaign goals for 2020, 2021, and 2022. Most notably we’ve done so during a global pandemic, a testament not only to the strategic and creative pivots of the Library during this time, but also thanks to our engaged board members and fabulous donors. 

• We created a new stand-alone website - friendshcls.org - beautifully designed and easy to navigate, maintain, and update with its own unique url. We are able to quickly communicate updates and news via our blog and social media accounts. 

• We moved the bulk of our fundraising efforts to a platform that makes it easier for people to give via PayPal or Stripe, via credit card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, or Venmo. We also created a curated list to allow donors to choose what they’d like to support with their dollars.

• We authenticated Friends as a nonprofit on Facebook and on Amazon Smile, allowing individuals to donate or fundraise on our behalf using their platform of choice.

• We are active with an ever-growing following on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Newly developed templates ensure that our messaging is eye-catching, professional, and on-brand. 

• We began a brand new spring floral fundraiser last year in an extraordinarily short period of time. It was so successful that we did it again this year with similar success.

• We submitted and have received funding for an ever increasing number of grants, with the funding going to support key programs within HCLS. 

• We continued to grow our Board in a manner that will allow our organization to thrive moving forward. 

Simply stated, I love our library system. 

Now more than ever, access to high quality public education for all ages is critical, and witnessing firsthand the many ways in which HCLS takes this mission to heart is inspiring. From On the Road to Kindergarten to the new Maker Space at Glenwood; from Undesign the Redline to Brave Voices, Brave Choices; from Teen Spaces to Battle of the Books; from the DIY Collection to the Art Collection - watching HCLS grow and thrive even in the most challenging of times is such an extraordinary gift. 

Thank you so very much for the opportunity to serve as the leader of Friends & Foundation of HCLS. 

I’ll end back where I began: it has truly been an honor and a privilege. 

Yours in gratitude, 

Mickey

Mickey Gomez  | she/her/hers
Chair
Friends & Foundation of HCLS Board of Directors

You can read a farewell message from HCLS President & CEO Tonya Aikens to Mickey here

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Thank you to Buffy Beaudoin-Schwartz for 6 years of outstanding service on the Board of Directors of Friends & Foundation of Howard County Library System.

​"Under Buffy's leadership as Chair of the Communications Committee, Friends built a robust communications strategy, created our own independent website, grew our online presence, engaged with donors at an unprecedented level, and celebrated our very favorite Library System in every possible way. We are so grateful." - Mickey Gomez, Board Chair

She demonstrated that Friends Make It Happen each and every day through her enthusiasm, creativity, dedication, and leadership.

​Our Howard County community is stronger and brighter thanks to Buffy. 

#FriendsMakeItHappen #HoCoMD #HCLS