President's Message

July 30, 2018

Thank you for visiting our website for information about the Friends of the La Mesa Library. The first thing you should know is that the Friends of the La Mesa Library, Inc. is a 501(c) (3) non-profit corporation (Tax ID # 33-0638967). All dues and donations are tax deductible to the full extent of the law.

Changes to the Board of the Friends of the La Mesa Library

In my previous message, I asked for members to step up to help run our organization. Thankfully, they listened. On July 26th at our annual General Membership meeting, we elected officers and board members for the next two years. I am pleased to announce that we have added new faces. Robin Theilmann is the Vice President/Bookstore Manager and Jon Lange is the Secretary. I want to thank Deborah Ives and Eileen Schmitz for their years of service on the board.

Library Space Needs

We continue our efforts to convince the City of La Mesa that the current library is of inadequate size to provide enough materials and services to a community the size of La Mesa. I was encouraged by a recent editorial column in the La Mesa Courier that supports our position for more library space. While most on the City Council understand the issue, they continue to lament the lack of available funding. Instead of a new library building as envisioned by the current Civic Center Master Plan, the City is considering building additional community room space that would be available to the library as well as the City. Much will hinge on feasibility studies on how other improvements to the Civic Center block can be designed and funded. We are currently in the election season with three of the city council seats up for consideration. Candidates will be blanketing the community seeking our votes. If you are approached by a candidate, or are at one of the meetings scheduled for voters to meet the candidates, I encourage you to ask them what their position is on the library and what solutions they might have for solving the current and future space needs.

Friends 50th Anniversary!

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the forming of the Friends of the La Mesa Library. We recently re-established contact with the La Mesa Women’s Club who originally sponsored the Friends in 1969. We hope to have some special activities next spring to commemorate this occasion. If you would like to help organizing or participating in such activities, please contact us.

Library Programming

The Friends continue to provide funding for library activities for all ages. I invite everyone to review the library calendar of events and attend as many as you like. Children’s programs are very popular with parents, grandparents, and young readers. The Second Saturday Concert series will begin its third season in September, 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. As local musicians become aware of this performance opportunity, we are able to offer a wider range of styles. Check them out.

If you have any questions or comments about how the Friends are doing, please feel free to contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

John Schmitz, President