The Dorr Township Library fund-raising effort through the “Arts Alive” program has collected almost $16,000, and the biggest benefactor is the Then & Now Historical Museum.

The library has agreed to have an addition built to its facility to house the historical service. The project cost has been estimated at about $40,000, so the fund-raiser picked up almost 40 percent of the financial support needed.

The Arts Alive competition, sponsored by the Allegan County Community Foundation, is an annual affair where the foundation selects deserving non-profit organizations to participate in a voting competition. Each organization is awarded one dollar for every vote and the top five receive an extra $4,000 each.

Dorr Township Library Board President Peg Otto told the Township Board the good news that the library picked up 11,824 votes and finished third among the 17 in the competition. The figures mean the campaign for the Then & Now addition received $15,824.

Then & Now Board Vice President Linda Stoepker, said last summer, “We have had some very generous donations from some of our members so far, but we have a long way to go. Dorr Township Library Director Natalie Bazan has applied for several grants to help our cause.”

Bazan promised Then & Now officials and volunteers,“All of the funds collected will be used for the Then & Now building fund. Even if we do not collect enough to complete the entire addition for Then & Now on the southwest side of the library, the funds will go to Then & Now for the addition, not to the library.

“We are thrilled to have the chance to partner with you to provide the community with a brand new space to accommodate the amazing work you do for the community, county and anyone who is interested in their own or our community’s history. As a former history major, I believe that we do have a responsibility to preserve our past and share it with our future. Sharing history makes it real and helps people feel connected to events, people and places of the past.”

The voting took place from July 1 to Sept. 8.

“Natalie is doing such a wonderful job as library director,” Otto told the Township Board. “Be sure to tell her how much you appreciate it.”

Bazan was not at the meeting because she was attending the American Library Association Conference and she plans to make a stop in Washington D.C. to obtain a slew of books she got for a free a year ago, but this year must absorb the shipping costs. The Township Board, led by Clerk Brian Boot, enthusiastically supported paying shipping because of the terrific low cost (nothing) of the books.