SCLF in the news
Reprinted with permission from The Reporter, Jan. 11, 2006.
Starting a new chapter
Ruth Begell to lead library foundationBy Brian Hamlin/Senior Staff Writer
 Ruth Begell, who once ran the Vacaville Museum, has been named the new director of the Solano County Library Foundation. (Tod Rasmussen/The Reporter) |
Begell had wanted to get involved with the Solano County Library Foundation for a long time, but duties at the local museum - and later with the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center - kept the Vacaville woman on the run.
Begell eventually retired from the Schulz museum in Santa Rosa in 2004 and began enjoying some free time. The library foundation remained in the back of her mind, though, and her opportunity to plunge into the nonprofit library organization came in a big way last fall when she began talking with foundation board members about the group. Yes, they replied, the foundation could use her as a member - or, perhaps, as an executive director.
The position, Begell learned, had been vacant for more than a year and it was the kind of job at which she felt she could excel.
But was Begell ready to give up her new-found freedom?
After lots of paperwork and several interviews, Begell began her new job on Monday.
"It had everything I was looking for - a good cause, a great board that's passionate about the library," Begell said a short time after inspecting her new office in the Fairfield-Suisun Chamber of Commerce building.
Director of the Vacaville Museum from 1985 to 2000 and of the Schulz Museum in Santa Rosa from 2000 to 2004, Begell said she enjoyed her time away from museum leadership roles, but she soon felt something was missing from her life.
"I had the best time, I really enjoyed my time off, but I've always been very mission-driven. I started feeling like I needed to have another big mission," Begell said. "I thought that this might be it, this might be what I was looking for next."
An avid reader, Begell began taking a closer look at the foundation a few years ago after attending one of the group's fundraising authors' luncheons. She enjoyed the gathering of writers and felt a strong affinity for the foundation's goals of supporting Solano County libraries and literacy.
"There's nothing better to serve than libraries. It's so important for people to be educated, to have access to books and information," Begell said. "And best of all, libraries are free. They're one of the keystones of our democracy."
The foundation, Begell explained, is not part of the Solano County Library system, but a separate, nonprofit entity that supports a broad range of library programs and affiliated literacy services.
Since 1994, the Solano County Library Foundation has raised more than $1.2 million to bolster library funding in the county.
The foundation partnered with the Buck Foundation to purchase the opening day collection for the Vacaville Public Library's new Town Square branch. It also funds the "Reach Out and Read" program whereby children receive books in pediatric clinics and waiting rooms.
The group also has helped with fundraising for public art at both Vacaville libraries and in providing materials for literacy programs in the county.
For Begell, one of the most important projects on the horizon is the opening of the new Fairfield Cordelia Library.
The foundation is spearheading a $500,000 fundraising campaign to purchase books and materials for the new, 15,600-square-foot library, scheduled to open off Business Center Drive in December. The library support organization estimates that the new library will need a collection of 47,000 items when it opens its doors, including books, CDs, DVDs, newspapers, magazines and books on tape.
A big part of Begell's new job will be coordinating future fundraising efforts and promoting community outreach and communication - letting the public know what the foundation does and what the county's libraries have to offer as well as what they need.
Brian Hamlin can be reached at courts@thereporter.com.