Fox Chapel Area telethon raises $16,400 for Sharpsburg Community Library

Programs and projects at the Sharpsburg Community Library funded by the Fox Chapel Area student telethon will continue for years to come, library officials said.

The event brought in more than $16,400 for the library at 1212 Main St.

“We are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support from the district community over the last two years,” library director Sara Mariacher said.

The library also was the telethon beneficiary in 2019, when the event raised $46,521.

Despite the global pandemic and its impact this year, the community generously donated to the library’s mission, which is to connect people to books, science and socialization, Mariacher said.

Fox Chapel Area students streamed their 31st annual telethon Dec. 23 but worked for weeks behind the scenes on a variety of fundraisers that included a virtual 5K and the sale of homemade wooden fox ornaments.

It's 30 minutes until Telethon time! Get ready! The telethon, which has a running time of 2 1/2 hours, can be viewed at https://t.co/vw6LQmDAOK at 11 a.m. Don't miss it! @SwiftFoxMedia

— Fox Chapel Area SD (@FCASD) December 23, 2020

The Sharpsburg Community Library is a branch of the Cooper-Siegel Community Library and offers computers, DVDs and books on CD; programs for adults, book groups and programs for children including story times, chess club and STEAM lessons.

The site is currently open for curbside service that includes material pickup and on-demand printing, along with 30-minute computer appointments.

The library also offers weekly take-and-make kits and virtual programs for kids, monthly kits for teens and adults, family holiday kits and two monthly genre book clubs that include mystery and sci-fi/fantasy.

A new weekly kid’s program, Artist & Scientist of the Month, featuring videos and take-and-make kits, will launch in February.

Based on the number of covid-19 cases in Allegheny County, Mariacher is uncertain when the library will reopen to in-person services.

Still, she said, staff will work behind the scenes while patrons are not there.

“We plan to use the telethon funds to create much-needed storage areas and to purchase furniture for a dedicated teen space,” she said.

Also, staff has been reorganizing the adult fiction and nonfiction sections to follow an easily browsable bookstore model by genre and topic, she said.

Money from the telethon will pay for signs to create a better flow.

“We’re always brainstorming new ideas to serve the community but so often we’re impeded by lack of funding,” Mariacher said. “Having the telethon funds in reserve will ensure that no good idea goes unfunded for the foreseeable future.”

Bonnie Berzonski, district coordinator of communications, said that during the past 31 years, district students have donated more than $918,383 to various local and regional charities through the telethon.

The 2020 telethon included a retrospective to celebrate years past and featured alumni through the decades who submitted videos for the piece.

The telethon was coordinated by the high school student government and the digital media production students.

It is available to view on the Swift Fox Media YouTube Channel.

Anyone interested in donating still has time by visiting secure.givelively.org.