Cheshire Public Library’s Incredible Results for Their Community

Most of our Energy Challenge participants have heard of the Friends of the Cheshire Public Library – our grand prize winner of the Community Reward program.  But what most people do not know, but Cheshire residents know very well – is just how active the Library is in helping their community.  The Cheshire Library, recipient of $5,000 worth of energy related prizes, has set the standard for community involvement in all of our 14 participating towns. 

The Cheshire Public Library has used their role as a hub of community activity to help Cheshire residents take action and reduce their energy use.  They continually display a ”Save money. Help Cheshire. Join the Neighbor to Neighbor Energy Challenge”  banner beside the Library entrance, but what has really made a difference is the regular hosting of events, including themed children’s readings and Neighbor to Neighbor workshops. 

“We saw [Neighbor to Neighbor] as an exciting opportunity to provide valuable information and savings to Cheshire residents.  The public library is the ideal setting for a program like this, as we are the ‘clearinghouse’ for information in our community,” says Ramona Burkey, Library Director.

Ramona added, “Plus, the Cheshire Public Library has a proven history of implementing energy-efficiency and sustainability measures, most notably the installation of solar panels on our roof a few years ago.  We are determined to set a positive and inspirational example for our town.”

The Friends of the Cheshire Public Library have done an outstanding job of informing residents about the resources available to them through the program, helping Cheshire homes become more efficient.

At the end of the day, it’s always about making a difference in their community.

Ramona said, “We’ve received very positive feedback from our patrons about how they’ve benefited personally from the programs we’ve held at the library.  It’s gratifying to see that the library has played such a direct role in improving energy efficiency in residents’ homes and businesses—thereby saving them a lot of money.  That translates directly to strengthening our local economy, which is a good thing!”

The library looks forward to continuing their efforts promoting energy-saving steps to their patrons.  On February 22,  the library will host a workshop on what causes ice dams and how to prevent them, [hyperlink event details] and on March 3, children can celebrate Dr. Seuss’ birthday with Neighbor to Neighbor!  [hyperlink event details]

To learn how your community group can get involved or for new ideas for continuing your efforts to help your community, contact us at (860)372-4406 or neighbors@ctenergychallenge.com.