By Rich Larson
Teams of trivia buffs will meet this evening at the Grand Event Center for the Friends and Foundation of the Northfield Public Library’s annual Trivia Bee. All proceeds will go to the Northfield Public Library.
Bill North of the Friends and Foundation of the Northfield Public Library said this is either the group’s 12th or 13th Trivia Bee. The Friends started with spelling bees, took a break, then came back with trivia, which North said works well because “everybody knows something about their own specialty.”
Teams are allowed up to four players. There is no elimination, which North said has made for exciting comebacks. Teams can also buy lifelines that let them make mistakes and stay in. Halfway through, there is a free heads-or-tails contest with prizes that anyone at the Grand can join. Players are trusted not to look things up on their phones.
Saying that the Friends have “resisted inflation,” he pointed out that the $100 entry fee (per team of four) has been the same price since about 2009. Online registration closed yesterday, but teams can also sign up at the door on Friday for a slightly higher fee. Refreshments will be served.
The Friends are also running their annual fund campaign. The goal is to raise $50,000 to finish upgrades to the library’s children’s area. North said a grant paid for most of the work but did not cover some parts of it. The campaign has a match of about $25,000, so every donation made from Nov. 1 through the end of the year will be doubled. The campaign begins in ernest on “Give to the Max Day”, which is November 19th, but North described the whole period as “a season of giving.”
“A donation to the Friends is a donation to the library,” he said. The Friends of the Northfield Public Library is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so donations are tax deductible. North said the group keeps its administrative costs very low.
The group was started in 1982 to support the library through fundraising, advocacy and outreach. The group has helped pay for library programs, the Bookmobiles, the Oasis and the library’s 2015 expansion.
More information is available online under Northfield Public Library Friends.
Rich Larson is the owner and General manager of KYMN Radio. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
