Susan Babbitt Award -- May 2, 2006 -- Collinsville, OK -- www.cvilleok.com

From: Combs, Terri
Sent: Tuesday, May 02, 2006 5:19 PM
To: Babbitt, Susan
Subject: Susan Babbitt recommendation for LERC nomination

Hi Susan,

This letter accompanied the LERC nomination for you turned in by Glenda Kilmer!

Terri Combs
LERC Chair
==================

2/9/06

Re: Susan Babbitt

Glenda,

Susan chaired a Downtown & Neighborhood Committee at the request of the Mayor and Commission. The committee made recommendations relating to Vision 2025 Downtown and Neighborhood Funds in the amount of $239,000. The committee recommendations were adopted by the City Commission and resulted in development of a Main Street Master Plan and a City Park Plan. Susan facilitated these meetings, led discussion and brought recommendations to the Commission. As a result of Susan's leadership the City has used some of the Vision Funds as matching funds to leverage $457,000 in outside funding to renew the streetscape for a 2 block portion of Main St.

Susan also took the lead as committee chair to make recommendations for façade grants resulting in a $25,000 grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank Board. Finally, Susan's committee leadership is currently working to I implement the City Park Plan by researching matching funds sources for the remaining $40 K + of Vision 2025 Downtown and Neighborhood funds.

Susan has provided leadership in the FOCAS effort to build a humane animal shelter facility for Collinsville. Susan's efforts related to fundraising activities and coordination of effort. Susan carried the FOCAS (Friend of Collinsville Animal Shelter) project to elected officials resulting in the donation of land, to the community resulting in contributions of funds and to the construction industry resulting in the pledge of materials to construct the shelter.

Susan is a constant force for the betterment of the community. She has served to unify diverse groups by utilizing the Collinsville Library for meetings and as a gathering place for positive community growth and development.

Bob Wolfram, AICP
Planning Director
City of Collinsville

Subject: Rave Review Nomination

What’s the name of your nominee? Susan Babbitt
What is the work location of the nominee? CV
What is the job title of the nominee? Branch Manager
What's your name & work location? Glenda Kilmer, LA
Tell us about it! I am nominating Susan Babbitt for her outstanding work in the town of Collinsville. Because of her activity the library is so integral to everything that happens in CV. She is on the Chamber of Commerce Board (5 years to the present) and has been recognized as "Member of the year" for two of those 5 years (2003 and 2005). The other years she has received Community Service Awards and the Library has received awards for their contributions to the community. Through the Chamber she has chaired the December Parade for 4 years….a very long parade with lots of people, cars, celebrities, Shriners, horses and floats. She has started three groups through the library which are now up and running on their own: Friends of the Collinsville Library, Collinsville Library Red Hat Red Birds, and the Collinsville Library Patchworkers Quilting Group. She revived the Comedy of Errors Book Discussion Group which began in 1904 and has come and gone through many librarians. It had been inactive for several years but is now in full swing. The CV library has a great volunteer staff who have assigned times to work throughout the week. Susan also has a group who are on call and work library events. She just has to make a few calls and the volunteers are there to help. She is chairman of the "Community 2025" committee which is in charge of making recommendations to the City Commission and the Mayor on how best to spend the 2025 funds for downtown beautification and the neighborhood portion of the funds. The downtown beautification will begin this spring and the committee is now making decisions on the City Park Project. She founded and is very involved in the "Friends of the Collinsville Animal Shelter," (FOCAS.) She hand picked four great people to be officers for the group and she is their spokesperson. It is a 501 tax exempt organization as of January 2006. They have raised $13,000 toward a new animal shelter and are working on the additional $12,000 needed to build the building. The shelter in CV is nearly nothing and is really just a horrible holding area until the animal control officer takes the animals to Owasso or Tulsa. The new shelter will be a no-kill facility with play yards, bathing facilities for the animals, separate kennel space for each animal, an exam room equipped for the vet, a ventilation system designed to keep air clean and free of germs, etc. etc. For all these reasons, on top of being a committed librarian, I nominate Susan Babbitt for a Rave Review.

Nominated on: 2/10/2006