To the editor:

Public libraries are life lines. I am a living example.

From my earliest days, my mom took me on many adventures to the local libraries wherever we lived. Growing up in Rowan County near Davie, I often visited the Davie County Public Library at Mocksville. As a teenager, I had questions that needed solid answers, so I spent several hours in the back of the non-fiction section, seeking answers to life’s confusing puzzles.

When I went through transitions in my life, I moved back to this area from Charlotte where I attended college. Once again, I went to the Mocksville Library to research issues I was having. I found so many great books through the NC Cardinal System, to help me navigate going through a divorce and manage my mental health.

After moving to Mocksville with my new husband, we were fortunate to live just around the corner from the Mocksville Public Library. We frequently walked over to the library to visit, pick up books, movies, and music for entertainment. Over the past several years, we have gotten to know some of the amazing library staff members. We’ve met some of our closest friends in the town from the Library Book Clubs, and other awesome events hosted by the library.

Now when we go out with our young daughter, we see library staff active in our community at family friendly festivals and kids’ events. This makes me so happy. Our daughter loves the Children’s Section of the library as well as the history room. She loves Book Sales as much as we do.

My hope for Davie County is that our community continues to support the public libraries in their mission “to serve as community commons, connecting people of Davie County to each other and the world through stories, knowledge, and technology. Davie County Public Library champions literacy, accessibility, life-long learning, and community.” The library programs provide so much vibrancy to our community. I hope that Davie County will always be a healthy and diverse village to raise all of our children together.

It concerns me deeply that when people from our community speak up about policy and procedure changes and other issues, they are called out as “slanderers”. How is it “kind” or cooperative to negatively label citizens who disagree with you? If our First Amendment, Freedom of Speech, is infringed upon such that speaking up and having opinions which constructively criticize leadership choices are condemned and silenced, how then is democracy to continue?

I love this country, too, and I love Davie County. That’s why I am worried about the future of our library and county operations.

I am personally thankful to the individuals working diligently to keep our library’s mission alive. Libraries have kept me going, even at my darkest moments. Let’s keep the light of hope shining.

Kyla Glover

Mocksville