To the editor:
My 40-plus years in Marblehead hardly makes me a “townie” in the classic sense, but there are some things I do know about it. One of them is the value of Abbot Library. It is primary to the welfare of the town.
Easily accessible to patrons of all ages, with something for everyone, it is a place of inquiry and community gatherings. Not to mention a pleasant, helpful and dedicated staff, at least a couple of whom I know are products of our own schools.
One would hope, in a town with a high educational demographic, that the knowledge portal that the library represents is not a luxury but a vital essential. To shutter it would be tragic.
What message does that send to a younger generation, particularly at a time in a complex and troubled world when facts and knowledge are so critically needed?
I have long believed that reading is one of the greatest gifts that one generation can pass to another. Abbot Library is the embodiment of that concept. I have often bragged about it to friends and relations residing elsewhere. I cannot fathom a town without a library.
Abbot is a precious jewel that must be allowed to continue its contribution to the quality of life here.
David Labovitz
Tidewinds Terrace
