The event honoring 28 volunteers featured a social hour, dinner and dessert and stories from local naturalist Jim Anderson.

Also recognized during the evening's ceremonies were Friends of the Library Board; the Sisters Library Advisory Council (SLAC); Mary Beth Pearl-Gent, Deschutes Public Library System (DPLS) Board member representing the Sisters area, and local library staff members.

In her prepared remarks Bermel said, "Our volunteers have put in 1,400 hours this year valued at saving the library $11,000 in wages. We circulated 80,000 materials over the last year which is a 50 percent increase over a five-year period. The volunteers shelve and re-shelve all of these materials for us."

Individual volunteers were introduced and given awards and gifts by Bermel.

Sandy and Rod McDonald were once again in charge of serving the ham dinner for library guests.

Jim Anderson gave some humorous anecdotes about his wildlife adventures in and around Central Oregon in his after-dinner speech.

"The woodpeckers have gone to heaven after the B&B summer fires," Anderson said. "The burned-out trees offer excellent habitat for them. It's also caused an increase in the raccoon population in Sisters but please, don't feed them.

"Feed the birds but that's where I'd stop in feeding wild animals," Anderson said.

Anderson went on to relate various encounters he has had with wily raccoons, much to the delight of his large audience.

As a result of after-dinner drawings, some lucky guests went home with the birdhouses that festively decorated tables in the large hall. A team of workers from Friends of the Library made these lovely centerpieces. Jim Anderson also donated bird and bat houses for the gift drawings.

"The library is heading in the right direction," said Bermel. "We'll have the new library completed in 2005 in a great spot on the former middle school property."

Other year-end assessments of the Sisters Library came from John Anderson, SLAC member.

"I feel the library has done a super job in Sisters. I am very pleased with the architect (Rich Turi) and his plans for the new library," he said.

"We're going to have a wonderful new library and I think we'll find monies to put finishing touches on the exterior that will make us all proud of the new facility," said Beth Pearl-Gent.