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Trustees, residents press board over turmoil at James L. Hamner Public Library
Summary
Residents and supervisors told the Amelia County Board of Supervisors on May 27 that high staff turnover, director resignations and service interruptions at the James L. Hamner Public Library require board attention. Trustees say they are investigating and have nominated new trustees to stabilize operations.
Multiple supervisors and at least one former library employee told the Amelia County Board of Supervisors on May 27 that the James L. Hamner Public Library has experienced repeated leadership turnover and operational disruptions that have reduced services to the community.
A supervisor read a resignation email from a former employee that said in part, "effective Wednesday, 04/29/2026, notifying the board of trustees and other parties that I'm providing my 2 weeks notice," and accused library leadership of "intolerable working conditions" and a lack of transparency. The board also heard a citizen letter that urged an exit process to identify why staff are leaving and to preserve early-literacy services for local children.
Joy Wersham, who identified herself in the meeting as the current trustees chair, told supervisors she had stepped in temporarily to lead and had been coordinating with county staff. "I was overseeing the library and the, the board," she said, describing attempts to keep operations running during recent departures.
Board members pressed for records, clarified the board's formal appointment powers over the library trustees, and asked county staff and the county attorney to research the historical practice of appointing supervisors as liaisons versus voting trustees. The board moved forward with trustee appointments during the same meeting: the body voted to appoint Benjie Morris as an at-large trustee and to reappoint Gail Garrity (District 1) and Tom Hagee (District 2).
Trustees and staff said they are working to document problems, involve legal counsel and clean up the library's records and processes. Several supervisors said they want a fuller report back to the board and asked staff to collect the emails and other documents referenced during the public discussion. The board closed discussion on the item and directed supervisors and staff to continue follow-up outside the public meeting.
The meeting record indicates strong disagreement among supervisors over process and the speed of any reappointments; one supervisor urged replacing long-serving trustees, while others defended recent efforts to stabilize the board and operations. No formal change to trustee bylaws or immediate personnel action was taken at the meeting beyond the appointments the board approved.
