By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Everybody needs a friend. Book lovers have grown accustomed to the Great Bend Public Library's giant book sale each fall. The event has been put on by the Friends of the Library to raise money for the library. Hannah Glass, outreach coordinator at the library, said with fewer than a dozen Friends and more leaving in 2025, there was no big book sale this year.
"We've typically had our big sale in October, which everyone loves, so we've had a lot of people asking about it," she said. "Unfortunately, we weren't able to do that because we don't have enough Friends to help with it."
Instead, the library is holding a mini Friends of the Library sale through Dec. 7 during regular business hours. Unlike the large sale downstairs, this sale is in the southeast corner of the first floor but still includes books, DVDs, puzzles, and more. Glass said the smaller sales are likely to stay until more Friends volunteer to help the library better serve the public.
"They raised money to pay for a Switch in the past, which we use for teen events," she said. "Also, teens are able to come here and play any time they want. That's really cool because that's something we never would have been able to have. They've also helped raise money for our recent crochet project that we did where we had kids come and learn how to crochet. They bought all the kits for us."
Friends of the Library help with various projects, including going through donations and sorting books and items for the sale. As a perk, Friends get to shop ahead of the public. An application to be a Friend may be picked up at the front desk of the library. Dues are $10 for an individual or $20 for a family membership. Memberships are for October through September each year.