The beginnings were modest in 1922.  There was a small building lent rent free, a coal-burning stove and donated books.

That was the origin of the Mineola Memorial Library, which celebrated 100 years on Feb. 2 with a gathering of residents and village officials.

“It was welcome to all,” said Charles Sleefe, who has been library director for about 17 years. “It was a great event.” 

The library’s current location at 195 Marcellus Road was not the original spot. It initially opened on the corner of Mineola Boulevard and Jericho Turnpike in a small, unused rent-free building that was lent at the time by real estate firm Childs, Weston and Warner, according to the library’s website.

Local generosity would be a common theme since the library’s inception.

The staffing at first was composed of volunteers, eventually joined by village trustees giving their time. Mayor Scott Strauss said during a February Board of Trustees meeting that it was a community effort to get the library running.

“They received donations of used books, new books, held fundraisers and accepted donations from local businesses to get it all rolling,” he said. “It was staffed by volunteers and heated by an iron stove with coal donated by a local coal company.”

“It truly was a homegrown, grassroots project,” he said. 

The current members of the village board also shared their experiences with the library, which was renamed the Mineola Memorial Library after its relocation in 1956 to honor those from the village who served in the military. 

Trustee Paul Cusato recalled going to the library to finish his schoolwork. 

“Whenever I think about the Mineola library, I get these flashbacks,” Cusato said. “Flashbacks of me when I was a kid, I had to go to the library to do my schoolwork, using the Dewey Decimal System to find the materials that I will need. Our library has served a village well, providing a wealth of knowledge to so many of our residents.” 

Trustee Janine Sartori said: “The library was one of the first places that I experienced the Mineola community when I moved here. I had small kids and the library has amazing activities for them. It was a place we frequently visited.”

Recent expansions at the library, Sleefe said, were adding virtual programs as a result of COVID-19, which limited operations to curbside pickup and home deliveries during the lockdown. Since then, he said, the library has been slowly returning to normal and bringing back in-person programs. 

Strauss finished his remarks in February thanking all involved in making the library what it is today.

“Congratulations and thank you to everyone involved with the library from the early days through the several locations and renovations that occurred over these last 100 years,” Strauss said. “All of you past and present have made it into one of our many jewels.”