Friends of the Library

The Pat Hazlehurst Fund, located at the Gorge Community Foundation, provides ongoing operating support to the Hood River County Library.

The library operates branches in Cascade Locks and Parkdale, in addition to the main library in Hood River, and has expanded outreach to Odell. The Friends of the Library provides financial support for annual library programming, including Hood River County Reads. 

Hazlehurst, a retired librarian and enthusiastic supporter of the library, brought the concept of distributing a book throughout the community to the Friends of the Library.

She developed the Hood River County Reads program in 2006 and chaired the program until her death in 2010.

Friends and family started and continue to support an endowment fund in her name at the Gorge Community Foundation to provide ongoing operating support for the library and its programs.

Endowment grants to the Hood River County Library District

Each year the Endowment grants funds to the library. The funds have supported the following projects:

• Wi-fi hotspots to lend in the communities of Odell, Cascade Locks and Parkdale
• Free books for to vulnerable populations and populations in underserved areas of our community
• Robot coding program
• Library of Things
• Projector and projector supplies
• People counters for the Hood River Library
• Marketing goal setting facilitation
• Robot coding program
• Staff team building activities and training
• Tablets and Laptops for patrons

How to donate to the Endowment

Gifts may be made:

• Online by credit card at www.gorgecf.org (gifts designated to the Pat Hazlehurst Fund).
• By mail to the Gorge Community Foundation, PO Box 1711, Hood River, OR 97031.
• Or by bringing a check made out to “Pat Hazlehurst Endowment” to the Hood River Library circulation desk.

Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

About the Gorge Community Foundation

Founded in 2001, the Gorge Community Foundation’s assets total over $6 million and the Foundation manages nearly 50 designated funds and 30 donor advised funds. The foundation makes grants and scholarships totaling over $120,000 each year and has granted over $1.3 million to Gorge organizations and students since 2003. The foundation is managed by a 10-member Board of Directors led by board president Gil Sharp that includes representation from Gorge communities on both sides of the river. More information is available at http://www.gorgecf.org/.

About Friends of the Library

We formed the Friends of the Hood River Library in 1977. Donations, membership fees, and the sale of books fund our efforts.  Through the years, the Friends have made large and small contributions to the library, from lamps and footstools to computers and children’s programs. 

In 1998 the Friends gave $10,000 in seed money to start the Library Foundation, which raised funds for the library renovation and expansion in 2003. The Friends ran an Early Open Campaign in 2011, making a donation that allowed the library to reopen six months early. 

Members of the Friends have volunteered in the library since 1977 and  continue to do so. (See the Volunteer page for more information.) The Friends meet at 11:00 a.m. on  the second Monday of most months at the Hood River Library. The public is  invited to attend.