The City of Danville invites the community to the renaming dedication ceremony of the Danville Public Library main branch on Saturday, Aug. 11, beginning at 11 a.m. Danville City Council has decided, on the recommendation of the Alpha Phi Omega Chapter, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., to rename the facility located at 511 Patton St. as the “Ruby B. Archie Public Library.”
The ceremony will take place outside the Patton Street entrance of the library and will include a dedication by Mayor Alonzo Jones, followed by special remarks from Conchitte Williams, president of the Alpha Phi Omega Chapter, and Carla Archie. A reception will follow the ceremony.
Ruby Archie was a beloved teacher for the Danville Public School system for 37 years, including as head of the English departments for both Langston High School and George Washington High School. She was also a member of Danville City Council, serving from July 1, 1994, until her death on June 26, 2010. She is the only female to serve as mayor of Danville, a position she held from July 1, 1998, through June 30, 2000. She served as vice mayor from Sept. 1, 1996, through June 30, 1998.
“The Danville Public Library is proud to honor the celebrated educator and city leader Ruby B. Archie, who had a long history of instilling a love of reading and writing as an English teacher in the city schools,” said Danville Public Library Director Joseph Zappacosta. “Her values of education and civic responsibility make her a perfect choice for this distinction.”
The building located in downtown Danville next to the Municipal Building has served as the public library for the community for more than 45 years. The building was first dedicated as a library in the early 1970s and underwent a major renovation in the 1990s.
The friendly library staff is available to give one-on-one assistance in the use of the library’s many resources, including access to free broadband internet. Library cards are free to anyone living within a 50-mile radius of the library. Borrowers have access to new bestsellers, movies, audiobooks and thousands of eBooks, and more.
