Originally Published in April 2021-
When a show of support was needed for the Etna Center for Community (library project), ECO's friends and partners showed up! For Representative Lamb's highly competitive FY22 Community Project Funding, the Etna Center for Community received 22 Letters of Support from local officials, organizations, and businesses. It truly does take EVERYONE to pull off a project of this scale, so we at ECO are humbled and incredibly grateful to those who are supporting this effort.
Here's a few of the most meaningful quotes:
"When service was lost with the closing of all public and parochial schools in our community, so much more was lost than just access to books. The connection between generations was lost as well, drastically changing the fabric of our community."
"Libraries are one of the few spaces left in our society where individual who utilize the space are not expected to spend any money."
"We believe having a community library will be beneficial to all of our residents especially our youth."
"I believe the library will be the center of civic life in Etna and an essential asset to help make our town a more equitable place for all."
Here's the list of those who lent their support to the project:
Municipal Support:
Borough of Etna, Borough Manager Mary Ellen Ramage
Etna Borough Police Department, Chief Tim Rodman
Etna Volunteer Fire Department, Chief Greg Porter
Mayor of Etna, Tom Rengers
State-level Support:
Representative Sara G. Innamorato
Senator Lindsey M. Williams
County-level Support:
Representative Anita Prizio
Resident Organization Support:
Etna Girl Scouts, Judi Becki
Etna Neighborhood Association, Diane Sheridan
Etna Pedestrian Alliance, Tom Hill Jr.
Garden of Etna, Tom Quigley
Faith Community Support
Bread of Life Food Pantry, Alexis Weber
Calvert Memorial Presbyterian Church, Tor Voller
First Congregational Church of Etna, Patty Bontempo
St. Matthew Parish, James GretzEmmanuel Lutheran Church, JJ Lynn and Thomas Hough III
Multi-municipal Partners:
Allegheny County Library Association, Marilyn Jenkins
Triboro Ecodistrict, Brian Wolovich
Business Community Support:
Cop Out Pierogies, Carl Funtal
Etna Economic Development Corporation, Pete Ramage
Kiya Tomlin Work Shop
Wild Child, Jamilka Borges
If you are an individual or part of an organization that has interest writing a letter of support for this project, please reach out to megan@etnacommunity.org