Books and Materials
Donate a book through Amazon.com Wish List
Thousands of people are on the Library's waiting lists to check out popular books and bestsellers, and due to current budget constraints, the Library does not have enough copies to satisfy demand. The Library's list of high-demand books can be purchased through their Wish List on Amazon.com, and by donating one of these books to the Library, donors can meet an immediate and specific need.
Kate Hanley (pictured), past Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, was the first to donate a book to the library through the Amazon.com Wish List. "This is such a great idea because you've made it very easy for people to support the library."
When residents buy books on the library's Amazon.com Wish List, the books will be shipped directly to the library's processing center. Donors will be notified by the library Foundation that their donated books were received. The donation is tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.
ExxonMobil sponsored Children's Foreign Language Collections
ExxonMobil has granted $60,000 to the Library Foundation to build Fairfax County Public Library’s children's foreign language collections in Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese. Thanks to ExxonMobil’s ongoing generosity, other collections will be added in the future.
Vietnamese
The unveiling of 804 Vietnamese language children's books purchased with a $20,000 ExxonMobil grant was held at a Tet New Year Celebration at Thomas Jefferson Library in Falls Church.
Spanish
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at Reston Regional Library’s 20th Anniversary celebration to unveil the 1,200 Spanish books, videos and cassettes purchased with a $20,000 gift from ExxonMobil.
Korean
In celebration of the Lunar New Year, Fairfax Library Foundation unveiled a new, special collection of Korean children's books made possible by a $20,000 grant from ExxonMobil. This 833-book collection, bearing gift bookplates in Korean, is housed at George Mason Regional Library.
"By supplying Korean materials, we help both Korean-speaking people as well as those who wish to learn more about the Korean culture," says Patrick J. Dexter, Community Relations and Contributions Advisor for ExxonMobil. Dexter also serves as a Board of Directors for the Fairfax Library Foundation. "Libraries are special entities where information is free to all in this country."
Orrin W. Macleod’s legacy continues
Fairfax County Public Library's impressive non-print book collection exists largely thanks to the generosity of Orrin W. Macleod. Mr. Macleod worked for Eastern Airlines as a baggage handler and was a longtime and frequent visitor to the Sherwood and Martha Washington library branches. When his vision became impaired a few years prior to his death at 58, Mr. Macleod became an avid patron of the library's recorded books collection. In 1994, the magnanimous gift of $1 million was donated to the Library Foundation from the Orrin W. Macleod Trust. Income from this investment is used to expand the popular non-print collection which continues to be enjoyed by so many.
Orrin Macleod's thoughtful gift has inspired others to include the Fairfax County Public Library through the Foundation as part of their legacy.