Resident urges commissioners to preserve library services, citing internet access and workforce needs

Cheryl Schaeffel, who identified herself as a Beltrami County resident living in Commissioner Joe Gould’s district, urged the Beltrami County Board of Commissioners to preserve library services and staff positions.

“The library is such an important part of this community,” Schaeffel said. She described how many residents rely on library internet access to apply for jobs, sign up for Medicaid and make Social Security appointments, and said many county residents lack home internet or unlimited phone data.

Schaeffel told the board that library services support people recovering from COVID-era isolation and provide essential connections: “They need that,” she said of residents who use library computers and other services. She warned that cutting library services would increase unemployment and harm children who develop reading skills through library programs.

Schaeffel did not present a formal budget request but framed her remarks as an appeal for the board to consider the library’s role when setting county priorities.