The official grand opening of the new Kennett Library and Resource Center had people passing books from the old library to the new one and members of the Lenape Nation of Pennsylvania chanting. There was a soft opening in June, but the ribbon-cutting ceremony was Sunday, Aug. 27.
Up to 100 people passed books one at a time down E. State Street from the old building to a book cart at the new site at the corner of State and Willow. There, outside the new building, members of the Lenape Nation who chanted as part of the land acknowledgment ceremony.
Chief Chuck Demund, who led the chant with his drum and voice, said the music was a way to “call on the creator to let him know we are all here, standing together.” He added that the chant was done six times, each time calling on the creator twice because the 12 is sacred to the Lenape people and that by calling 12 times, it goes “all the way up to him so he can hear our words and know that we come together in a good way.”
Library Collections Development Coordinator Lou Florence said members of the Nation were invited so the library could “recognize and honor the Lenape as the original inhabitants of this area, who continue to live and steward this land. We do hereby commit to actively support our Lenape sisters and brothers in whatever way we are able to help to maintain, share, and celebrate their cultural identity and ongoing presence. We are honored and grateful to have you here today to celebrate together the opening of the Kennett Library and Resource Center.”
Chief Adam Waterbear is one of the four chiefs of the Lenape Nation and the director of education and tribal storykeeper.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to be here today. This is a really important event. We do a lot of events and they're all important but the Kennett Library, we’re so happy to see this opening. Kennett Library is an amazing partner of ours.”
Waterbear said the Lenape people of Pennsylvania have a river run every four years where they paddle the Delaware every year. They stop and hold signings of the treaty that “brings together people who want to acknowledge the indigenous people and caretake the land. Kennett Library joined us on our last river journey in 2022 and came together to sign that treaty and commit to those ideals. They’ve backed that up every step of the way ever since.”
But the opening of the library brings to a conclusion decades of debates and controversy over where it should be located ever since the board realized the old building wasn’t cutting it anymore.
“It’s a relief,” said library board trustee Jeff Yetter. “I’m happy for the community. This is a community library. There’s nobody who owns it, nobody who benefits from it other than the community.”
He said the two-month delay between the softy opening and the grand opening was to make sure all the technology was working properly and smoothly. The technology is important, he said, because “Libraries aren’t just about books anymore.”
Yetter credits library Executive Director Chris Manna with making the new library what it is.
“This is the beginning,” Manna said. “We have big things planned and I hope people can start to understand about what we’re trying to do for the community. This is a generational building and I hope the building last for another 60-plus years, but this isn’t just about building a building, it’s about building a community.”
The library has maker spaces, one for adults and teens, and another for younger kids. There are also classrooms where education students from West Chester University will help all age groups learn more and understand the technology of today’s computerized world.
There’s also a 108-seat auditorium, 15 meeting rooms, four rooms for tutoring. That tutoring is for various subjects, including helping people get their GED and where immigrants can get help studying for citizenship and for learning English.
Manna said the library has five different ways of looking at literacy: basic reading and writing, information literacy to help people understand technology, civic and social literacy, and health literacy where partners such as Penn Medicine and LCH (La Comunidad Hispana) talk about health issues and offer health screenings. And there is also financial literacy.
In short, he acknowledged the library is sort of an adjunct learning center for students and adults.
The library at E. State and Willow streets is free to join and has free WIFI. For more information about the library, visit https://kennettlibrary.org
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
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