Dear Editor,

I am writing in concern of the issues occurring at the Monticello Public Library. I am very upset by what the Village Chair of Monticello, Tere Dunlap, accused a worker of and how she made a public issue out of something that should have been handled at a local level.

Zoe Buehl goes above and beyond for the library and its patrons. She always has a smile and a friendly comment when you come in. She is a vital part of the library. Ms. Dunlap accuses her of using the library computers to summit a post to a Facebook page for the library in an article published on the front page of the Monroe Times. Is it possible that Ms. Buehl used her phone or her own laptop to post that? Yes, it is, and most likely what Ms. Buehl did. When Ms. Buehl reposted it to her own, private FB page, that is her prerogative.

For many weeks, patrons were asking both the interim director, Ms. Seaver, and Ms. Buehl if Ms. Seaver had been hired as the director yet. I know because I heard some of them firsthand. I also asked as well, and so did my husband. A lot of people feel Ms. Seaver, who has done the job every year the director went to spend the winters in Arizona, is very well qualified and a friend to many of us. Now, I do not mean personal friend, I mean someone who is friendly and makes you feel welcome when you come in to the library. She knows what she is doing. She knows the community she is serving and what their needs are.

I would also like to point out that the computers Ms. Dunlap speaks of were paid for by the Friends of the Library and not the Village of Monticello. They held a silent auction to raise money for them. My husband and I donated two of the baskets. We are both Friends of Library members. There is no way to prove that the post Ms. Buehl came from one of those computers.

At one of the library board meetings, early on a Saturday morning, many supporters of Ms. Seaver came to show their support for her. People spoke of her knowledge, her warmth, what she brings to the library, etc. Both my husband and I spoke in support of her being hired. There were well over 30 people there to show their support. I would also like to add that no one spoke against her being hired as the director.

I am all for the library board hiring whoever they feel is the best qualified candidate. I think that someone who has actual experience doing the job should be given first consideration as she lives in the community and has worked there over 18 years. Some of those years, as I said, she did the director’s job while the director spent her winters in Arizona.

I am also upset at the Monroe Times reporter who reported the story, as they did not talk to either Ms. Seaver or Ms. Buehl. I would think that would have been a requirement for a front-page story. I hope any future stories will have the facts right and be formed by the reporter talking to all parties involved.

For Ms. Dunlap to accuse Zoe Buehl of, in any manner, derailing the process because of a possible lawsuit is ludacris! Zoe Buehl has a heart of gold and has worked at library since she was a teenager, the past 13 years. She shouldn’t have posted what she did on the library page. Regardless of her doing that, it was not what has derailed them from hiring a new director. Shame on you Ms. Dunlap. Shame on you. Put the blame where it belongs. It belongs on the library board for failing to offer the job to the most qualified candidate. It belongs on you for failing to appoint people to the library board who can do the job.

Jennifer Chladil,

Monticello