The Record Newspapers - Hometown News For Orange County, Texas

The Friends of the Bridge City Public Library have elected new officers for the upcoming year.

The Friends group began as a support committee in March 1988 when twenty concerned citizens addressed the needs of the community to establish the city’s first public library.

The response from the public was tremendous.

So many books were received that a local portable building company donated a large building for temporary storage.

The Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors hosted a softball tournament and barbecue and volunteers held many book and bake sales.

By August 1988 a non-binding referendum passed showing support for a new public library and the city appointed a board of trustees for the library.

This group developed it mission statement which is to stimulate public support and encourage more extensive use of the library; to interpret the library’s needs to the public and work to fill those needs: to provide direct financial assistance to the library; to stimulate private gifts, memorial, endowments and bequests and to help extend and improve library services.

The newly elected president is Rhonda Vercher. She has worked as a children and reference librarian for a local library for seven years before returning to college. She will graduate from Lamar University this fall and currently volunteers as a reading mentor at West Orange Elementary School, works with Community Church Women’s Ministry and is a weekly volunteer at the Bridge City Public Library. She is married to Don Vercher.

The vice president is Shirley Jordan who has been a longtime volunteer at the Bridge City Public Library and served as president for the past two years. She is retired.

The new secretary is Don Vercher who is a debate coach at Little Cypress-Mauriceville CISD. He also volunteers at Community Christian Church as teacher of adult classes.

The new historian is Ellen Curtis who is originally from Ontario, Canada and has only lived in Bridge City for the past thirteen years. She also serves on the Bridge City Library Board of Directors and is a retired bookkeeper.

The treasurer is Charlotte Chiasson. She is the charter president of the Friends of The Bridge City Public Library in 1988 and has been an active member since. She works at Lamar State College-Orange and volunteers in the children’s Sunday school department at Commonground Church.

If anyone would like to join The Friends or volunteer at the Bridge City Public Library, they may call the library at 735-4242. The library hours are Monday through Wednesday 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.; Thursday open late from 1 to 7 p.m. and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. There is no fee for a library card for anyone in Orange County.