RFL Library seeks new director

By Linda Bell
Correspondent

Red Feather Lakes Library director Marilyn Colter is starting a new chapter in her life on June 1, as she becomes owner-manager of Mountain Crafts Gallery.

Bob Miller, president of the library board of trustees, said the board acted upon the resignation with considerable regret because Colter has been such a successful director.

The board named Margie Caswell, a retired Poudre School District teacher and president of the Red Feather Lakes Library Friends Board, as an interim staff member. She and children's program director Karen Deane will manage the library until a new director is named, he said.

Miller said the director's position will be advertised through the Library Network web site and posted within the community. "We are looking for someone who has a degree in library science or the equivalent in terms of experience," he said. He added that besides excellent administrative skills and a visionary outlook, they will be looking for someone who can work easily with the many volunteers who have been the mainstay of the library since its inception.

According to Colter, the library opened in the Property Owners Association building in 1969 with a budget of $260 and 250 donated books resulting from the merger of the county and the Fort Collins city libraries. In 1987, the present library building opened with an all-volunteer staff, she said. Colter was hired as a part-time director in 1995 with an annual budget of $30,000, of which almost half was raised from local resources. She became the full-time director after the tax-supported library district was created by citizen vote in 2000 and the annual budget increased to about $130,000, she said.

Miller said under Colter the library achieved its goal of a completely funded $300,000 expansion project, currently under construction. The dedication for the new addition is scheduled for August.

The library earned numerous awards and grants over the past few years, Miller said, including a large Bill and Melinda Gates grant and an award from Web Junction, a library web site that featured Red Feather as "Library of the Month" in 2004.

Miller said the board is now taking applications for the director's position. Interested parties are invited to send a cover letter, resume and a list of references to the Red Feather Lakes Library, P.O. Box 123, Red Feather Lakes, CO 80545, by fax to 970-881-2836, or by e-mail to rfllib@frii.com. Applications will remain open until the position is filled.