"Without libraries what have we? We have no past and no future."
–Ray Bradbury

Milledgeville only has two libraries and one of them is located in a small strip mall in an inconvenient location for most residents.

Mary Vinson library is cornerstone of the Milledgeville community. Without Mary Vinson Library, which has an extremely convenient location in Downtown Milledgeville, the disadvantaged citizens of Milledgeville will be left without a place for their children to access books, DVDS, a safe place to stay while their parents are working, and important programs where they can socialize, learn, and feel wanted. Older patrons will lose access to computers, printing, resume and cover letter help, and climate control they might otherwise not have access to. 

It is unacceptable for any community to remove their citizens' access to knowledge and safety provided by libraries. By defunding Mary Vinson library, the Baldwin County Commission is implicitly admitting they don't value their citizens. Libraries provide so many important services listing them all would take hours. There are so many unintended consequences from closing down public libraries.

One extremely important service Mary Vinson Library provides is a gathering place for the community. Mary Vinson holds several events a month to bring Milledgevillians together. Not a day goes by where local community members don't utilize the social aspects of the library. In a society where loneliness is becoming an epidemic, libraries are a beacon of hope. 

Milledgeville doesn't even have a bookstore yet the Baldwin County Commission is okay with taking away its citizens access to free books. Without this library, Milledgeville will be worse off. In a city where violence and poverty are huge problems, Mary Vinson Library stands as one of the biggest cures for the local population's increasing disenfranchisement.

The Baldwin County Commission needs to know we will not stand for the wanton destruction of our public libraries. If we need money, we will need to find it elsewhere. Our libraries are off limits.