By Paul Shapiro
The Board of Trustees of the Hewlett-Woodmere Public Library is proposing a library budget for 2009-10 which includes an increase in the amount of taxes raised through local property taxes for the library of .93 percent. Included in this amount is a decrease in personnel costs through the elimination of one librarian position as well as the reorganization of library staff.
"Understanding the exceptional and very difficult economic times facing our community, keeping the increase at .93 percent attained the board's goal of remaining under 1 percent," said Benjamin A. Eilbott, president of the library board of trustees. "More than half of that increase is attributable to the loss of revenue tied to the severe economic downturn - decreases in state support, and, of course, to a dramatic drop in revenue from our secure and fully collateralized investments."
If the budget is passed, an additional $5,000 will be provided for the continued acquisition of electronic resources or databases, which may be accessed in the library or remotely from residents' homes and offices.
Also on the ballot will be the election of two library trustees. David Adler is running unopposed for a five-year term. The second position will fill the unexpired term of Susan S. Warner, who resigned as of December 31, 2008. The two candidates for that position are Pamela Bluth and Frank Zaret. Both candidates regularly attend library board meetings.
The candidates:
- David Adler, of Woodmere, is running unopposed for a five-year term. Adler, known as the author of the nationally-loved Cam Jansen books for children, has been a library trustee for the past six years and is a devoted library patron. He is a life-long resident of the area, a former teacher and editor, the author of more than 200 books, and the winner of the New York Library Association's 2009 Knickerbocker Award for Juvenile Literature for his body of work.
- Pamela (Schlanger) Bluth was born in the Bronx. She is the second of three children born to Brenda and Simon Schlanger, of Monsey, NY. Bluth went to elementary school at the Adolph Schreiber Hebrew Academy (ASHAR) in Monsey, NY; attended Yeshiva University High School for Girls in Holliswood, Queens; and earned a Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education in 1994 from Stern College for Women in Manhattan. She holds Master's Degrees in both Elementary Education (Queens College) and Educational Technology (NYIT). She has taught at Yeshiva Har Torah (Queens), P.S. 55 (Richmond Hill, Queens), where she received her tenure and is currently completing her ninth year teaching kindergarten in the Plainview-Old Bethpage Central School District. In POB, Bluth has served as a Staff Development Facilitator, and is a member of the school's Technology Committee and Site-Based Committee. She has also served as an alternate representative to the Plainview Congress of Teachers. She is married to Dov Bluth of Woodmere. The couple resides in Hewlett with their five children. They are active members at both the Young Israel of Hewlett and Congregation Anshei Chesed. Bluth recently coordinated a blood drive for Congregation Anshei Chesed and is involved in cooking meals for new mothers at both synagogues.
- Frank Zaret and his wife, Sally, are long-time residents of Woodmere. They raised three daughters in the community. An actuary by profession, Zaret is a fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA) and a member of the American Academy of Actuaries (MAAA). He served as a Vice President at the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company during his working career. Currently retired, Zaret is a Trustee on the Board of the Nassau Library System, a New York State agency that promotes and supports the continuous improvement of public library service in Nassau County by facilitating cooperation and resource sharing among libraries. He has also been active on various Hewlett-Woodmere Public Library committees, including Long-Range Planning. Zaret served as President of The Friends of the Hewlett-Woodmere Library for six years and is still active with The Friends as an adviser to its board. He is also currently a Vice President on the Board of Trustees of the Five Towns Senior Center.
For results, visit www.liherald.com on Wednesday, April 8.
