Aging library cat receives overflowing support from generous local community: 'We are so grateful'

Libby the Library Cat has been given a new lease on life thanks to the generosity of the local community, who donated over $3,300 to pay for her medical bills. The Ashville Free Library in New York was inundated with donations after launching a fundraising campaign to cover the veterinary care costs of its aging in-house feline, Libby the Library Cat.

Speaking to The Post Journal, Kristina Benson, the library director, shared that the response from the community has been overwhelming. The library board met on March 29 to discuss how to manage the flood of donations.

“Now that we have been able to pay our past vet bills, we will be setting aside those donations to Libby’s ‘account’ to offset future costs for her care,” Benson said. “The donations have ensured that we are able to pay for her daily needs, as well as her medications, vet visits, lab tests and other future needs.”

Libby, who is 19 years old, contracted a cold but is now doing much better since receiving treatment. “We’re monitoring her weight because she has trouble sometimes keeping food down, but she has stopped sneezing and coughing,” Benson said. “The donations have given us breathing room in case we need to see the vet again or make adjustments for her tummy troubles with a special diet and so on.”

Benson expressed her gratitude to the community for their help and support. “The outpouring of affection for our dear Libby has been so heartwarming,” Benson said. “We’ve had folks coming in who’ve never visited our library, telling tales of cats that were important to them, and how Libby’s story in the paper touched their hearts.”

Benson also highlighted the challenges that small local libraries face with limited budgets and the importance of community support. “It’s unfortunate that libraries, in general, are so short-funded that we have to ask for donations to help run our operations and programs, and that our budgets are so tight that something like a vet bill can overwhelm the year’s tally sheet,” she said. “We are so grateful for the community support from individuals who care about having these special and unique libraries in the county.”

The Ashville Free Library is a small library in a rural area of New York that relies heavily on the support of the local community. Libby has been a beloved fixture at the library for years, and her health struggles have highlighted the importance of community support for small libraries.

Benson hopes that the outpouring of support for Libby will encourage more people to get involved with their local libraries and support their vital work in their communities.

"Libby is doing so much better and she's appreciated everyone's visits and well wishes! Thanks to the community, we have raised money to ensure her good care going forward, as well as paying her old bills," the library wrote in a fundraiser update. "We love our kitty and we love our library- and your generous support has been a great message that you all feel the same. THANK YOU!!"