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<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>Communications Department<o:p></o:p></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">814 West River Center Dr. NE, Comstock Park, MI 49321-8955<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center">For more information, please contact Carol Simpson at 616-250-1473<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">For Immediate Release<br>
August 18, 2016<br>
<br>
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b>Mortgage Burning Celebration for the Nelson Township / Sand Lake Branch Library</b><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:14.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">KENT COUNTY — To celebrate paying off the mortgage for the construction of the Nelson Township / Sand Lake Branch of Kent District Library, the community is planning an old-fashioned mortgage burning party. In tribute to the community’s
agricultural heritage, families are invited to dress in farm-friendly attire and enjoy food, fun and farm festivities. There will be a petting zoo, quilt show and music performance by
<i>Country Stringz</i>. This <i>Our Community Celebrates</i> event takes place on Saturday, September 10, 2–4 p.m. at the Nelson Township / Sand Lake Branch, 88 8<sup>th</sup> Street, Sand Lake. A special ceremonial mortgage burning will take place at 3 p.m.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“It takes a community to build a library,” says Carole Simpson, Kent District Library Trustee and member of the Friends of the Nelson Township / Sand Lake Branch. “Many individuals, families, businesses, organizations and groups contributed
to the capital campaign that made our beautiful library possible. The community’s generosity allowed us to pay off the library building four years ahead of schedule.”
<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In addition to community donations, funds to construct the library came from a 15-year low-interest loan for $725,000, which originated in 2005 from the Rural Development Program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Loan payments were
made with funds from a 0.039 millage dedicated to the construction and maintenance of the library in Nelson Township. Both Nelson Township and the Village of Sand Lake contributed with money from Community Development Block Grant Funds and Courtland Township
also contributed toward the construction costs. Over the last 11 years, the Friends of the Nelson Township / Sand Lake Branch contributed $93,000 to pay down the loan principal using proceeds from their many successful book sales.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The 8,736 square foot Nelson Township / Sand Lake Branch Library opened on May 19, 2007. The library is currently open 42 hours a week. In 2015, 48,280 people visited the branch and checked out over 100,000 items. 7,612 people attended
programs at the branch in 2015 and nearly 11,000 people used the library’s computers and Wi-Fi access.
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<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i>Kent District Library is a public library system operating 18 branch libraries. KDL serves nearly 400,000 residents of 27 governmental units, comprising most of Kent County, Michigan. KDL is an IRS-designated 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported
by millage dollars and private donations.</i><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><o:p> </o:p></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><i>####<o:p></o:p></i></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">This news release is available in digital format, with a photograph of the library at
</span><a href="http://www.kdl.org/mortgage-burning-celebration-nelson-twp-sand-lake-branch"><span style="font-size:10.0pt">http://www.kdl.org/mortgage-burning-celebration-nelson-twp-sand-lake-branch</span></a><span style="font-size:10.0pt">.
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">Heidi Nagel<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">KDL, Manager of Communications & Programming<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">814 West River Center, NE<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Comstock Park, MI 49321<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">616-647-4146<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="mailto:hnagel@kdl.org">hnagel@kdl.org</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.kdl.org/blog"><span style="color:windowtext;text-decoration:none"><img border="0" width="50" height="50" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image003.jpg@01D1F949.A40B0710" alt="50px_rss-square-social-media"></span></a>
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