Contact: Deborah Davis,Campaign Manager


Campaign for America's Libraries


312-280-2148

For Immediate Release


September 19, 2003

Friends and Foundations of California Libraries wins FOLUSA/Baker & Taylor @ your library® Award

Friends and Foundations of California Libraries is the recipient of the first annual FOLUSA/Baker & Taylor @ your library® Award. The $2,000 award is given annually to a library Friends group that makes the most creative use of the @ your library® brand. The honor was presented at the Friends of Libraries U.S.A.(FOLUSA) Award Luncheon during the ALA Annual Conference in Toronto.

Friends and Foundations of California Libraries was recognized for its “Library Lover’s Month” @ your library® campaign. The campaign was designed to assist local library support groups with awareness campaigns and fundraising efforts by offering free promotional tools from its Web site (
http://www.librarysupport.net/librarylovers/). The American Library Association’s (ALA) trademarked @ your library logo was featured in all campaign materials.

“I'm so pleased that Friends and Foundations of California Libraries won the @ your library award,” said Sally Reed, executive director of FOLUSA. “Their ‘Library Lovers' Month’ program included graphics and all sorts of ideas that libraries across California could replicate.
Because of the far-reaching nature of their project, the @ your library brand was seen throughout the state.”

The “Library Lover’s Month”@ your library initiative netted national recognition in
The Ladies Home Journal and
Scouting Magazine. The campaign’s Web site also received
over 100,000 page views and over 20,000 unique visitors. The Web site, created by Stephanie Stokes Design, based in Studio City, Calif., includes free artwork, bookmarks, online postcards, poems, a library support tip guide “How to Love Your Library,” and more.

The Campaign for America’s libraries is an ALA multi-year public education effort to speak loudly and clearly about the value of libraries and librarians in the 21st Century. Friends group that have not yet joined The Campaign for America’s Libraries are encouraged to register so that they my be eligible for the 2004 FOLUSA/Baker & Taylor @ your library Award. Free downloadable @ your library logos, sample press materials, programming ideas and are available on the campaign’s Web site at
www.ala.org/@yourlibrary.

FOLUSA
is a nonprofit membership organization of more than 2,000 individual and group members. The organization motivates and supports local Friends groups across the country in an effort to preserve and strengthen libraries. For information about FOLUSA membership, please call 800-936-5872 or send E-mail to
folusa@folusa.org.

The award’s corporate sponsor, Baker & Taylor, is a leading distributor of books, videos and music products to libraries and both traditional and Internet retailers. Baker & Taylor maintains one of the largest combined in-stock book, video and music inventories in the United States with approximately 385,000 titles in inventory and over 1.5 million available for order.