[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 142 (Tuesday, September 5, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S3890]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO NANCY CROWELL

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, on September 10, the people of 
Scarborough, ME, will gather to thank Nancy Crowell for her 45 years of 
outstanding contributions as Director of the Scarborough Public 
Library. It is a pleasure to join them in celebrating Ms. Crowell's 
exceptional service.
  She began the job in 1977 when the library was a small wooden 
building on Black Point Road with a budget of $35,000. Today, she 
leaves behind a modern library with a budget of more than $1 million 
that reflects the value the townspeople have placed on her efforts.
  Ms. Crowell bought the library's first electric typewriter and, as 
she noted when announcing her retirement, ``I started at a time when 
books were checked out with rubber stamps and the new technologies were 
VHS and Betamax tapes and our new equipment was a used 16mm projector 
to show films.''
  In paying tribute to Ms. Crowell, Bill Donovan, president of the 
library's board of trustees, said that, ``Under her leadership and 
direction, the library has grown to become an integral part of the town 
fabric, becoming a center for children, adults, and retirees to not 
just browse and read, but also to gather and take advantage of the 
library's many resources--much more than the humble beginnings Nancy 
found when she joined 45 years ago.''
  The Scarborough Public Library is a beacon in the community, where 
everyone receives a warm welcome and the power of knowledge is 
accessible to all. It is not just a repository for books, but also a 
place that inspires imagination, provides entertainment, spurs 
innovation, and fosters lifelong learning and community engagement.
  The Roman philosopher Cicero said, ``To add a library to a house is 
to give that house a soul.'' In the same vein, to build a community 
library is to reveal that community's spirit. Nancy Crowell has done 
just that with expertise and dedication, and I wish her all the best in 
the years to come.

                          ____________________