Residents urge review of Middlebury Public Library youth materials during Elkhart County public comments

Four residents used the meeting's public-comment period on Dec. 2, 2024 to urge the Elkhart County Board of Commissioners to press the Middlebury Public Library to remove or restrict certain materials in its youth sections that the commenters described as sexually explicit and harmful to children. Commissioners did not take formal action during the meeting; the remarks were made during the privilege of the floor.

Cindy Hytchek of Goshen said her concern "is on a narrow category of materials accessible to unaccompanied minors." Hytchek described those materials as "graphic" and said they include depictions or graphic descriptions of sexual conduct that she believes are inappropriate for unaccompanied children.

Pam Keiser of Middlebury addressed library governance and budgetary questions. Keiser said the Middlebury library director began in March 2021 and that the library board approved several recent salary and benefit increases, including pay adjustments that Keiser said would place the director's salary "over 95,000 with that 45 days of PTO." Keiser presented charts she said came from a Gateway website, saying that "since 2020, the actual employee compensation has gone up 34%" and that comparing 2020 actuals with the 2025 budget shows an increase she calculated as 47%.

A speaker who identified herself only as Sherry (who gave a local address in the record) said she supports the library and its staff but opposes what she described as "a narrow list of controversial books found in the youth areas" and urged the board to remove or relocate those books so they would be accessible to minors only with parental permission.

Angela Young (introduced in the record as "Angie, Angela Young") invoked a historical document read into the Congressional Record in 1963 and quoted passages she said were relevant to the library discussion; she argued the community should keep the library "a safe place for all of our children."

None of the public commenters proposed a specific county action the commissioners could take during the meeting; speakers urged the board to reconsider appointments or to press the library board and library staff to change collection access policies. Commissioners did not announce follow-up actions during the meeting.

Speakers and main points

- Cindy Hytchek (Goshen): focused on restricting access to a narrow category of materials in youth areas and highlighted concern for unaccompanied minors. - Pam Keiser (Middlebury): raised budget and pay questions for the Middlebury Public Library, citing staff compensation increases and budgeted totals; asked commissioners to consider appointment actions. - Sherry (resident; local address provided in record): said she supports library staff but opposes specific policies that permit the questioned materials in youth sections; proposed removing or restricting access. - Angela Young: cited historical material and urged keeping libraries safe for children.

What was not decided

The meeting record shows the comments were part of the public-comment period; commissioners did not vote on or direct staff to take immediate action on the library or its appointments during the Dec. 2 meeting.