Vesna Simon, community library manager; Bridget Quinn-Carey, interim president and CEO of Queens Library; City Councilman Antonio Reynoso; City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley and Friend’s President Maryellen Borello help mark 85 years of the Library’s Ridgewood branch. Photo Courtesy Queens Library
As part of the Queens Library System, which serves a population of 2.3 million in one of the most ethnically diverse counties in the U.S., the Ridgewood Library celebrated its 85th anniversary last Wednesday.
According to library officials, the Ridgewood Library first opened its doors on Madison Street in Ridgewood on Oct. 15, 1929, and was the first library in the Queens system to be built with city funds.
Previously, the Ridgewood Library had made its home in store fronts, which it quickly outgrew. Throughout the past 85 years, the library’s present building has been expanded and upgraded, thanks in part to strong community involvement from groups such as the Friends of the Ridgewood Library.
“We are very excited about this culmination of the year celebrating the Ridgewood Library,” said Maryellen Borello, president of the Friends of the Ridgewood Library.
Borello, along with the Friends group, helped organize a recent photo presentation and discussion about the library’s history as well as memories written by past and present library users.
Other programs celebrating the library’s 85th anniversary included, back in May, “Wee Games to Play” for children, according to Borello, which featured games played in years past such as pick-up sticks, jump rope, jax, bean-bag toss, hit the stick, hopscotch and hangman.
“The children really enjoyed the games,” Borello said, adding that in September the library held a dance program for adults, dubbed “Shall We Dance,” outside on the library garden patio, featuring dances through the years and an instructor.
And, earlier this month, Borello said that an anniversary cake accompanied a picture and oral presentation about the history of the library.
She said that during the year the Friends group had been collecting people’s memories of their use of the Ridgewood library through the years and organized them into a binder.
“The programs were a huge success and a lot of fun,” Borello related.
But, beyond the recent anniversary, Borello said that the Friends have worked hard over the years to help improve the library space by lobbying and testifying for funding, in addition to holding fundraisers for the purchase of books and other library materials.
She noted that among the library’s numerous offerings are after-school programs for school-age children; English Speakers of Other Languages classes for adults who need to learn English; toddler and storybook times for young children; entertainment, educational events and book discussion groups for all ages.
“We look forward to the next 85 years of the Ridgewood library as it evolves, but continues to play a major role in residents’ lives,” Borello said.
For more information about programs, services, locations, events and news, visit the Library website at queenslibrary.org or call 718-990-0700.
By Alan Krawitz
