HR0971 LRB094 19774 HSS 56481 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the House of Representatives of the
3 State of Illinois are pleased to recognize the Rolling Prairie
4 Library System (RPLS) on the occasion of its 40th anniversary;
5 and
 
6     WHEREAS, When RPLS was incorporated in October 1965, it had
7 five charter members, including Decatur Public Library,
8 Friends Creek Township Library in Argenta, Illiopolis Public
9 Library, Marrowbone Township Library in Bethany, and the
10 Vespasian Warner Public Library in Clinton; the first System
11 Director was Elizabeth Edwards, who joined the System in
12 February 1966; today, those five charter members are a part of
13 a System membership that includes 127 members, 9 academic, 46
14 public, 48 school districts, and 24 special libraries, serving
15 a total of 264 individual library facilities; and
 
16     WHEREAS, Early services of the System included bookmobile
17 service, rotating collections, central book ordering and
18 processing, and a film collection; as libraries became more
19 self-sufficient, the services of the System changed to provide
20 consulting services, a wide range of continuing education and
21 training programs, delivery, and an automated circulation
22 system with a database of over 2.6 million library items for
23 147 libraries; and
 
24     WHEREAS, Although library systems were first created to
25 promote and support public libraries, systems soon saw the need
26 to become multi-type, and in 1985 Rolling Prairie welcomed
27 academic, school, and special libraries to its membership with
28 representation on its Board of Directors; and
 
29     WHEREAS, Throughout Rolling Prairie Library System's forty
30 years of service, it has had only four directors; Elizabeth
31 Edwards, the original director, began in 1966; Ray Ewick became

 

 

HR0971 - 2 - LRB094 19774 HSS 56481 r

1 director in 1972; Robert Plotzke followed in October 1978; and
2 on July 1, 2005, Beverly Obert was named the current Executive
3 Director; therefore, be it
 
4     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
5 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6 we recognize the Rolling Prairie Library System on the occasion
7 of its 40th anniversary; and be it further
 
8     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
9 presented to the Rolling Prairie Library System as an
10 expression of our esteem.