News
Friends Annual General Meeting
Monday March 23
All are welcome to attend the Friends of Springwater Public Library Annual General meeting on
Monday March 23, 5pm at Elmvale Branch.
Minesing Open House
The Springwater Township Public Library Board held an Open House at Minesing Branch on Tuesday, September 23, 2025. Please see below for the information that was presented and a brief review of the information shared. Thank you to all who attended and provided their thoughts. A special thank you to the Minesing CRA for providing pizza and juice and helping to promote the evening.
Background
The Feasibility Study of 2014 recommended that the Springwater Township Public Library Board continue to look at the usage of Minesing Branch. The Board has monitored the usage and requested an Open House to hear back from Minesing patrons.
The Open House was held on Tuesday, September 23 at 6:00 p.m. with 80 people in attendance, plus refreshments provided by the Minesing CRA. Community members were shown a number of display boards which included the history of the branch and the significant drop in usage over the past number of years. In fact, the data, which was based on usage shows a 70 per cent drop. The information boards can be seen on the Library’s website under About Us – Location. Residents were encouraged to talk to the Library Board members who were all at the Open House and provide written comments.
Open House Comments
There were 26 written comments received, plus one dropped off at the Branch on Thursday, and 3 emails. The comments and conversations at the Open House were wide-ranging and included:
- Minesing Branch is too small and should be enlarged
- More hours are needed
- More programs are needed
- The Minesing staff member was very helpful and friendly
- Why is rent paid to the Township for the Minesing location
- Why do students from the school no longer come during the day
- Minesing Branch is well loved
- Children love the library and we need to keep it.
- Minesing is forgotten by the Township
There were several misconceptions that came through the comments. The first is regarding hours. Hours were increased from 3 days and 18 hours to 4 days and 26 hours total in 2018. There was an increase in total visits, however they declined again in 2019. Minesing opened on Saturdays for a trial basis, however there were few visits. When the circulation figures are looked at on an open hour basis or a per capita comparison between Elmvale and Minesing, Minesing statistics remain very low. More in depth statistics may be analyzed for further study.
Conclusion
It was important to hear directly from Minesing users so the Board can better understand the role of the Minesing Branch and what is needed to provide library services to the community. The Board wishes to continue providing access to materials and programs, and will look closely at the comments from Minesing residents. Thank you to everyone who came out and shared their opinions.
Kathy's Retirement
The following is an article published on July 31, 2025 in the Springwater Newspaper:
Popular Staff Member Retires
MIDHURST – July 25, 2025 – The Midhurst Branch of Springwater Township Public Library was busy on Wednesday night after hours, as many residents came to say good-bye to long-time staff member, Kathy Cook.
Kathy, who has been with Springwater Library since May 2006, announced her retirement a couple of months ago, and her last official day is July 30. As many of the community members commented, she always knew their name, even if they hadn’t been in the library for months. They thanked Kathy for her help finding them books and recommending new authors, and for all the programs she implemented.
In her years at the Midhurst Branch, Kathy was responsible for many programs including the popular Reading Buddies, Ladies Night Out and the Silent Auction fundraisers, the Happy Bookers Club, Princess Tea Parties, and the Smile Campaign which gave back to the Elmvale and District Food Bank. She brought in the authors Kelly Armstrong, Ted Barris, Nita Prose, and Ashley Audrain. She did programs for children and adults and partnered with many in the community who came in to share information and teach new skills. She loved working with the many outstanding volunteers who helped out every day and celebrating them with the Volunteer Tea.
“Kathy has been a valuable member of our staff, and we congratulate her on her retirement. She is amazing at customer service and I’m sure our patrons will miss seeing her smiling face behind the desk,” says Jodie Player Delgado, CEO of Springwater Township Public Library.
When Kathy was asked to reflect on her time at the library, she responded; “Springwater Library has been an incredible and fun place to work due to my awesome coworkers, the opportunity to be creative, to network with our community and to serve each one of you!! It has been an honour and a privilege for which I feel very blessed. I will treasure the relationships and memories for many years to come!!”
The consensus from everyone on Wednesday night was that Kathy will be missed.
By Jodie Player Delgado