As a relatively new member of the Marshalltown community, I am especially impressed by the Marshalltown YMCA, the Marshalltown walking trails, and the Marshalltown Public Library. The Marshalltown Public Library, especially, is the jewel of this community. Marshalltown was the first newly constructed Gold LEED CERTIFIED library constructed in Iowa in 2008.

In addition, in 2013 the library was the first and the only library in Iowa to win the National Medal for Library Service which was awarded to them in the East Wing of the White House. You can see a photo of Michelle Obama shaking hands with our librarians in the framed award in the lobby of our library.

Our head librarian, Sarah Rosenblum, has 38 years of service, but her last 12 years in Marshalltown she considers a highlight of her career. She works with Joa LaVille the Youth Services Manager who is so effective at her job that she gets calls from all over the state from librarians wanting to duplicate her successful program.

In 2022, the Marshalltown library was the only one in Iowa that was chosen to host the National Traveling Holocaust Exhibition. Over 10,000 people came to our library from 31 states and 2 countries to view it. Not all states had a library chosen for the exhibit, so it was an honor for Iowa and Marshalltown.

I know I’m not the only one who appreciates our wonderful library because in 2015 the Marshalltown community voted to provide extra money to support the library. Unfortunately, Iowa House File 718 was passed this spring, so the library has been stripped of $200,000, reversing the will of the Marshalltown voters. If you want to help, you can donate at Friends of the Library — Marshalltown Public Library (marshalltownlibrary.org).