David Vieira, a leader in the City-Wide Friends of the Boston Public Library for over a quarter century, passed away on July 10th after a long illness. In his time he had been president of CWF for 12 years, also serving as Vice President, and most recently, as Branch Liaison for CWF. He was a tireless advocate for patrons and branches of the Boston Public Library, attending probably more branch board meetings, trustee meetings, and committee meetings than anyone else in the history of the BPL. Dave could be loud, bossy, imperious, a Roman emperor of CWF. He was also patient, helpful, and informative to newcomers and those in need of help. At the regular CWF book sales he was the ring master, barker, and voice of the book sale; constantly encouraging customers and staff with ideas such as telling people to shake hands and introduce themselves to whomever was next to them or asking who had come from the most distant city to attend the sale. Nothing was too low or too silly to raise more money for CWF to give to the benefit of the BPL and the branches. In a full life he was active in other fields including local politics, and real estate. He was an avid sail boater, often inviting friends to come sail with him around the Charles River Basin even after he was legally blind. Farther afield he often visited friends on Nantucket, in Connecticut, and even in Florida. He was a constant source of ideas and history of the Library. He knew what had been tried, who had done it, and how it had turned out. He knew where the bodies were buried. He was a gadfly and thorn in the side of Library administrators and bureaucrats and a champion for the branches and patrons of the Library. Those who knew him and benefited from his knowledge will miss him in the future. Those in the future who will never know or benefit from knowing him don't know how much they will be missing. A memorial service is planned for Friday, September 16th, 11 am, at the Forsyth Memorial Chapel, Forest Hills Cemetery, 95 Forest Hills Avenue, Jamaica Plain, MA 02130. Reception to follow in Hyde Park.
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Please call (617) 859-2341 or email cwfbpl@hotmail.com
Many of the Boston Public Library Branches have their own Friends Organizations. Please visit them.
Book sales are on the first Saturday of even-numbered months from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. at the Central Library’s McKim Building at Copley Square.
Most hardcovers are $2, most paperbacks are $1, “special” new and collectible books are individually priced.
Inventory includes thousands of books in all genres (children’s, young adults, history, sci-fi, romance, mystery, fiction, classics, reference, foreign language, and more). We often have “sales” within sales.” For example, romance novels might be four for $1.
The power of a Friends group is its members. We represent a variety of interests, talents, and financial support allowing the Boston Public to meet and exceed its goals.
We make a living from what we earn,
We make a life from what we give . . .
What we do for ourselves dies with us,
But what we do for others lives forever."
- Winston Churchill
The Friends are always eagerly welcoming volunteers. This is a great opportunity to meet people, gain experience, and make a huge impact on our community!
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