Public invited to attend TRL Board of Trustees retreat July 18

Note: This article was updated on Friday, July 17, to include a statement from the sender of the media alert. 

Some concerned citizens are sounding the alarm over a Timberland Regional Library (TRL) Board of Trustees retreat scheduled for Saturday, July 18. 

The purpose of the retreat is to provide trustees with information and background on the library district's financial outlook and the levy lid lift process, TRL said in a news release. 

TRL is currently trying to solve a $3.8 million budget shortfall that has led to layoffs, the resignation of former Executive Director Cheryl Heywood, and the departure of two senior employees who spoke disparagingly about board members and patrons in messages that later became public. 

The TRL Board of Trustees, TRL administrators, staff and patrons generally agree that TRL needs to pass a levy lid lift by the end of 2027 to stabilize TRL’s budget and prevent further layoffs. 

TRL assured the public that the retreat is informational only, meaning no board action will be taken and no decisions will be made. 

However, an unidentified group of “concerned citizens and library patrons,” issued a press release Thursday morning urging the public to virtually attend the retreat out of concern that the board could “intensely negotiate” a controversial list of “desired outcomes” proposed by Board of Trustees President Brian Mittge. 

Mittge, who represents Lewis County on the Board of Trustees, has faced public scrutiny over the last month after a list of his “desired outcomes” for TRL that he brought to an informal meeting with TRL Interim Executive Director Andrea Heisel on Friday, June 12, became public. 

The contents of the document are below:  

Desired outcomes:

• No sexuality for kids. Materials about sex, sexual & gender orientation moved from children & youth sections to adult section.
• No sexuality in children's activities.
• Make libraries places of unity, not division. A neutral place that taxpayers can be proud to support, that parents can be excited to visit.
• Make libraries safe places of respite, not hotbeds of activism. Nonpartisan and neutral. Earn back people's trust.
• Open and geared toward safety for families, not activists and homeless.
• No rainbow and activist displays. Monthly celebrations aren't uniting, they are dividing. Be beige, not rainbow.
• No dividing kids from parents, no suggesting they hide things from them.
• Libraries aren't places to teach about sexuality and librarians aren't therapists.
• Just get back to being a library. You're alienating people. They're saying no.

The leaked list sparked intense public debate, with Mittge and his supporters arguing the proposed outcomes are “common sense library policies” to curb “radical activism" within TRL; and opponents expressing concern that the list promotes views that are harmful to those who are LGBTQ+, homeless, of a race other than white or of a religion other than Christianity. 

Mittge’s most vocal supporter regarding the document remains Lewis County Commissioner Sean Swope. 

Dozens of public commenters spoke at the Board of Trustees’ June 24 meeting to voice their opposition to Mittge’s “desired outcomes.” Trustees Dustin Loup of Grays Harbor County and Mary Beth Harrington of Thurston County also voiced their dissent.  

The media alert issued Thursday morning by an unidentified sender asked the public to “flood the official stream link to maintain absolute transparency.” 

"We cannot change the closed-door committee meetings that have already passed, but rural taxpayers can completely flood the virtual meeting room this Saturday,” the sender said in a media alert. 

The sender warned that if community members do not show up “en masse,” that “decisions will be made in the dark that could permanently sign a death warrant on our local branches.” 

TRL issued its own news release after the anonymous media alert went out to correct what they said was misinformation about the planned board retreat. 

The sender of the media alert has since identified themselves as Victoria Loveland of the TRL advocacy website “AngryCatLibrary.com” and issued a public apology for the misinformation in their media alert. 

“I am currently navigating a severe crisis after my loved one suffered a stroke. In my deep distraction and panic, I mistakenly broadcasted an inaccurate internal draft,” Loveland wrote. 

Loveland confirmed Thursday afternoon that the information released by TRL about the July 18 retreat is accurate. 

The retreat will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, July 18, and will consist of presentations from TRL staff and invited guests to review the levy process, current financial projections, and the levy lid lift options available to the board. 

Trustees will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss the information presented. 

Because no board action is scheduled, public comment will not be taken during the retreat. 

Any action regarding topics discussed at the retreat would take place during the board's regular business meeting on Wednesday, July 22, at the Tumwater Timberland Library.

Meeting agendas and participation information are available at TRL.org/Board

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Note: Brian Mittge is a longtime contributor to The Chronicle newspaper. He currently serves as a columnist and in the past has worked as a reporter and editor.