GLENDALE : Library Volunteers Get a Page of Thanks

At Glendale’s five public libraries, the volunteers who help fill the gaps no longer get a mere thank you. Those who stick it out for the long run are immortalized--sort of--in the pages on the library shelves.

Library officials recently initiated the “100 Hour Club,” a program honoring volunteers with a commemorative plate placed in the opening pages of a new book for every 100 hours they give.

“This was one of the nicest ways we could think of to thank people for the time that they give. It not only reflects that time, it says it in a book,” said Chuck Wike, a library spokesman.

Of the library system’s 200 volunteers, more than 40 have been honored so far--and some of them have logged much more than a mere 100 hours.

Take Stanley Whitsitt, for example. A die-hard film buff, Whitsitt has been coming to the library once a week for the past 11 years to help repair aging 16-millimeter movies.

“He’s dedicated to film. He won’t even use a video camera,” Wike said.

Then there is Campbell Warden, a retired man who has logged at least 2,218 hours in the library’s clerical department. At the city’s Casa Verdugo branch, Erika Blackman has volunteered more than 1,100 hours. And the list goes on, library officials said.

Wike said there are several programs beginning in September with opportunities for people interested in volunteering with the library, including the “Grandparents and Books” program, operated by the library’s children’s services department; and the Adult Reading Program, which needs new tutors. Information can be obtained by calling (818) 548-3999.