Goodall Library in Sanford to receive $3M in federal funds for upcoming expansion

In late December, I got a text from Chip Schrader, the director of Goodall Library in Sanford. He had the excitement of a kid who got to open the biggest present underneath the Christmas tree.

“The library will receive $3 million to fund our addition and renovation,” Chip told me.

He was talking about federal funding in the Omnibus bill that President Biden was then expected to sign. U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree and U.S. Sens. Susan Collins and Angus King had worked together to secure the funding for Goodall Library’s first expansion in nearly 50 years. The Department of Housing and Urban Development also supported the amount, Chip said.

I was thrilled for my hometown library. As a lifelong patron and former board member, I could not believe my eyes when I saw the dollar amount now expected to come the library’s way. I had the week off from work when Chip reached out to me, so I asked him to get back in touch with me after the holidays.

And sure enough, when I returned to work earlier this month, I had press releases from Pingree and Collins, trumpeting the good news.

“The Louis B. Goodall Memorial Library has been dedicated to enriching the minds of its community for more than a century – and no matter the space the public library was housed in, that mission has remained true,” Pingree said. “I proudly fought to include funding for their latest renovation project to support the Library’s mission to broaden horizons, encourage knowledge, and create a meaningful space for connections within their community.”

Chip applied for the funding through Pingree’s website, after State Library Director of Development Janet McKenney alerted him about the opportunity. With the application, he included supportive letters from City Manager Steven Buck, Literacy Volunteers of Greater Sanford, and others. In no time, Pingree, Collins and King proved happy to sponsor the effort.

“It was an amazing, all-hands-on-deck effort that is uniquely Maine,” Chip told me.

Chip said he hopes the expansion can begin sometime after this summer, depending on the availability of contractors and other moving parts. The expansion will create three new quiet study rooms, a space for young adults, a new meeting room, and a pickup window for patrons to take out books. Also, the current structure itself will be renovated with “some long-needed TLC,” according to Chip. Technology will be updated, as well.

Goodall Library has always been there for those of us who grew up in Sanford and live here now.

I grew up a few blocks away from the library and was able to walk there by myself at an early age. During my single-digit years, I repeatedly borrowed those compilations of “Peanuts” comic strips that were popular in the '70s. My friend and I also enjoyed watching film strips that the library offered in a small viewing room.

As a teenager, Goodall Library was there for me when I discovered Stephen King and was determined to read his every word, starting with “Cujo.” Long before the Internet – this is the '80s we’re talking about – I turned to Goodall Library when researching subjects for papers I needed to write for junior high and high school. Oftentimes, my friends and I would grab a table in the library’s upper level and simply do our homework. Sometimes I would walk to the library, duck into what is now its community gathering room, and read Marty Meltz movie reviews in old copies of the Maine Sunday Telegram.

And, throughout the past 30-plus years, I have ventured to the library to borrow books or take out movies, research old newspapers on the microfiche machine, write some Coast Star articles, complete some course work, attend an event or two, and, as mentioned, even serve on its board of directors.

It’s all right there: heartwarming evidence that Goodall Library has been an important part of my journey into literacy and my academic and intellectual progress throughout my life. I am not alone: this is the case for so many of the library’s patrons.

It all brings to mind something Chip said when he expressed appreciation to Pingree and others for securing the expansion funding.

“It reaffirms the relevance, value, importance and significance of public libraries in a free society,” he said.

Indeed. Thank you, Goodall Library, for playing such a vibrant and important role in the community’s growth.

Now, we are happy to say, it is your turn to grow.

Shawn P. Sullivan is an award-winning columnist and is a reporter for the York County Coast Star. His latest book, “Just Doesn’t Get Better Than This,” is now available on Amazon. He can be reached at ssullivan@seacoastonline.com.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Goodall Library in Sanford to receive $3M in federal funds for expansion