Marmaduke unveils new library thanks to surprise benefactors

Marmaduke superintendent Tim Gardner joins students Maggie Mays, Charlie Froman, Layton Cramer and John Rubbo in the newly remodeled MES library.

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Near the end of the 2008-09 school year, Marmaduke superintendent Tim Gardner applied for grants to allow the district to remodel the elementary library. During the summer break between the last school year and the current year, Gardner learned the school's application had been denied.

Gardner believed the school would continue to use the facility as it was, with the hope that future grant requests would allow the project to take place at a later time. He certainly didn't expect what happened next.

In July, Gardner received an email from someone claiming to be from People Magazine. No stranger to spam email, Gardner said he almost deleted the message without even reading it. On a whim, however, he opened the electronic correspondence.

"They asked me about our elementary library and why we didn't get the grant," Gardner said. "As it turned out, they were planning a special issue and, through a partnership with Target, were going to re-do 16 elementary libraries."

A teleconference was set up with Gardner and representatives from Target and People, and the superintendent provided more information about his school and the need for a renovated elementary library. A week later, Gardner was informed Marmaduke had been one of the lucky schools chosen.

Earlier this month, a work crew hired and paid for by Target arrived at the Marmaduke campus and began remodeling the library. Last week, the project was completed, taking only two weeks.

"They came right in and went to work," Gardner said. "There was no disruption to classes. They got in here and got the job done. It was very professional."

The improvements have been easily noticeable. The library now sports a much more updated appearance, with bright colors welcoming young readers inside. The design includes a reading corner where students can take a seat on bright beanbag seats to enjoy their favorite books.

Everything from ceiling to carpet was remodeled, giving the library a new feel to match its appearance. The revamp also included four new computers and 2,000 books. The project even provided new books for students to keep. Each student from preschool to fifth grade was given five new books of their very own.

"It's been great," Gardner said. "I could hardly recognize it. The students are excited and so are the teachers. It's helped us stress the importance of reading to the students. We're grateful to People Magazine and Target for making this possible."

A nice bonus to the renovation saw Marmaduke featured in the October issue of People. The coverage features more on the program and includes photos of Marmaduke students enjoying their new library. The issue likely will be one of the magazines found in the MES library.

"I'm sure we'll have some of those around here," Gardner laughed. "The students are excited about being featured in it. I think we're all fans of People now, that's for certain."