WMRLS Night at the MassMutual Center A Grand Success!

John Ramsay, Administrator of the Western Massachusetts Regional Library System (WMRLS) prepares to drop the ceremonial puck at the Springfield Falcons Game on January 23, 2010 at the MassMutual Center in Springfield. Accompanying him for the faceoff are Wally, The Green Monster (Red Sox Mascot) and opposing captains for the Falcons and the visiting Hartford Wolf Pack.

Some 150 WMRLS supporters, from all 4 western counties, attended the match, which was a fundraising benefit to honor WMRLS. During the puck drop, the announcer read off this message to the large, near-capacity crowd: “John and the Western MA Regional Library System want you to know that, in difficult economic times, people use their libraries more. Right now, and for the last 10 years, usage has risen to all-time highs. Please support your local libraries at town meetings, and encourage our legislators to support State funding of library services, especially the Regional Library Systems.”

To cap off a great evening, the home team tied the game in the third period and won it in a thrilling overtime.