Honorable Commissioners,

 Yesterday, I received the curt e-mail below from County Manager, Dennis Stark.   

This reply was in response to my several e-mails asking what the context of his request for a meeting was:

 The potential for shutting the library system down...

Dennis Stark

Lyon County Manager

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

I am disturbed by this for many reasons.  First and foremost, the possibility of closing all branches of the Library 

System should have been addressed in person as an utmost urgent issue, yet Mr. Stark chose to be evasive until 

pushed to reveal the issue.  As the County Manager, he should have at least attempted to contact me by phone 

when the issue first became apparent as a possible action.  My staff at Yerington knows how to reach me even 

when I am not sitting at my desk in Yerington.  His flippant response is unprofessional to the highest degree.

Addressing the issue of the value of the Library System in Lyon County, I can say with certainty that I can not 

imagine a community without access to the free resources offered at local branches.  The elected officials will argue

 that Libraries are not essential services.  Obviously, Mr. Stark shares this view.

Define essential to the job seekers who flock through our doors on a daily basis to build resumes and apply for

 jobs.  And to the unemployed who rely on our free Internet resources to apply for unemployment, Medicaid and 

other forms of assistance.  Lyon County has the highest unemployment rate in the State of  Nevada.

Define essential to the families who come seeking resources on how to manage their money, save dollars and 

survive on one income, or less.  Lyon County has one of the highest rates of foreclosures in the State of Nevada.

Define essential to the people who come seeking resources on self-help and mental health issues.  Lyon County 

has the highest rate of suicide in the State of Nevada.

Define essential to the parents of pre-schoolers who bring their children to Story Time which builds a foundation 

of early literacy and love of learning that will give them a solid start to success in school.  Lyon County has one of

 the highest rates of high school drop outs in the State of Nevada.

Define essential to the teens who flock to neighborhood libraries every day after school because the communities 

were not funded with after school recreational activities.  The Library provides a safe gathering place in which they 

are welcomed.  Lyon County has the highest rate of teen pregnancy and one of the highest rates of teen alcohol and drug abuse in the State of Nevada.

Define essential to students who attend schools in which libraries are no longer staffed with trained librarians or 

funded with adequate budgets to update collections.  Smith Valley School Library still has on their shelves 

geography books listing the U.S.S.R. as a country.  Define essential to the students who do not have access to a 

computer and printer at home to complete homework projects such as science research papers and term papers 

which are required to be typed.

Define essential to community development which is dependent on infrastructure such as schools and libraries to 

attract families and businesses.  Define essential to the grass roots community organizations who desperately need 

an accessible meeting space.  Define essential to the residents residing in communities that are no longer growing 

or are shrinking (Silver Springs and Yerington) and have limited access to retail businesses offering books, magazine

s, newspapers, DVDs, books on CDs, databases, public Internet access, photocopy and FAX service and trained 

staff.  Staff trained to assist first time computer users in establishing e-mail addresses necessary for any on-line job 

applications and government e-services.  Staff trained to assist residents in locating crucial information and resources

on sensitive topics ranging from diabetes to learning disabilities to managing angry teenagers.  Staff trained to guide

 residents through the vast Internet world and locate information relevant and reliable to everything from on-line 

travel reservations to fondue recipes to up-to-date information on critical health issues to job searching techniques.

I urge you to give due consideration and thought to the prospect of closing the Lyon County Library System down 

entirely.  To close the libraries will forever mark Lyon County as a county that does not value free access to 

information and resources.  Lyon County is at the top in so many statistics, do we really want to be known as the 

only county in Nevada that does not have public libraries?  In the long run, can we really afford that?

 Theresa Kenneston, Library Director, Lyon County Library System