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Hawarden Public Library reports nearly 16,000 checkouts in 2025, receives $10,000 Carnegie gift
Summary
Library Director Maddie told the council the Hawarden Public Library logged 15,989 checkouts in 2025, participated in county-wide collaborations, and received a $10,000 Carnegie gift to refresh landscaping; the library plans a May ceremony to unearth a 1976 time capsule.
Maddie, director of the Hawarden Public Library, presented the library’s 2025 annual report to the city council on Feb. 25, highlighting circulation, outreach and new funding.
"Because of you, I get to do a job that I love," Maddie said, describing the library’s staff and programs. She reported the library circulated 15,989 items in 2025 across juvenile, young adult and other collections and detailed interlibrary loan activity: the Haywarden library borrowed about 180 items and loaned 459 items to other libraries in 2025.
Maddie outlined partnerships and programs — pizza fundraising with Pizza Ranch, outreach to elementary students, a summer reading program, bike-to-school events, community block parties, and collaborations with county libraries through a shared catalog (Apollo) to speed holds and sharing. She described a partnership that helped a visitor from Sweden trace family genealogy, and noted volunteers and staff who support the library’s work.
The library also received a $10,000 gift from the Carnegie program in celebration of America's 250th birthday; Maddie said the money will be used to refresh landscaping and support a time-capsule ceremony planned for May when the 1976 capsule will be unearthed and reburied by current fifth graders. Maddie encouraged residents to contact her directly about misinformation on social media and said her door is "both literally and figuratively always open."
