Public library donates equipment, materials to Kagman center

  The Kagman Community Center recently received a donation of various learning materials and equipment that would benefit the residents of the island’s biggest village.

Joeten-Kiyu Public Library executive director John Gonzales and Library Council member Herminia Fusco, along with Bookmobile staffers Bedebii Woodruff and Xerxes Mangarero, presented 35 boxes of books, five boxes of VHS tapes, bookshelves, a used desktop computer, and television to Kagman Komunidat Association president Daniel Huh.

Gonzales said the latest donation is part of their outreach efforts to the island’s remote areas or underserved populations. Three or four laptops will also be set up in the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library’s Bookmobile service to allow its patrons to access the Internet.

Last year, the state library donated library materials to the Garapan Youth Center and the Rota Public Library, which is scheduled to open at the end of the month. Another donation is scheduled for the Koblerville Youth Center next week, Gonzales added.

“We’re grateful to the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library for always helping us,” Huh told Saipan Tribune.

Huh said the Kagman Community Center, which was built through federal funds, is only open on Tuesdays to Thursday from 3pm to 5:30pm. Lack of funding, he said, prevents the community from fully utilizing the center, which is currently run by volunteers.

“If the central government does not provide us with a budget, we can’t open the center to the public for additional hours and days. We need help from the government as well as sponsors and donors,” said Huh.

Precinct 5’s Rep. Ramon Basa (Cov-Saipan), who was at the presentation ceremony with Rep. Fredrick Deleon Guerrero (Ind-Saipan), also expressed his gratitude to the state library for its donation.

“All these items can get our Kagman Community Center going,” said Basa. “It’s not so much but it speaks volumes.”

Basa promised to help take the center “to the next level” by working on obtaining funds for needed repairs at the facility.

A former teacher, Deleon Guerrero separately said that the donation is a “great thing” that would help the students who use the center. “They should take care of it because these things are not easy to come by,” he added.

Library Council’s Fusco, for her part, said the Joeten-Kiyu Public Library has come a long way in providing services throughout the Commonwealth. She commended Gonzales, whom she described as conscientious and motivated in seeking federal funding to improve library services and better serve its clients.

“We have a lot more patrons now who are utilizing the library. It’s at a point where we are able to provide what’s needed in the community,” said Fusco.