NSDAR Excellence in Community Service Award

Pictured here (left to right) are Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) members Peggy Newkirk (Worthington Chapter), Marilyn Vaglia (Ohio State Regent), and Joyce Kline (Worthington Chapter Regent) at a May, 2001 meeting. Peggy Newkirk received the NSDAR Excellence in Community Service Award and was presented with a certificate and pin for service on behalf of the State Library of Ohio.
The state library of Ohio was begun by Governor Thomas Worthington in 1817. State Library of Ohio personnel received notice in June 1996 that the Supreme Court of Ohio would take over the building (located at 65 S. Front St., Columbus, OH) that had been home to the library since 1933. Two years later no acceptable site for the library had been chosen, as the court requested that the library be out of their building by December of 1999. There was a possibility the library would be closed for up to two years, posing concerns that the library's collections numbering over 2 million items would be inaccessible.

In 1998, Peggy Newkirk reported the library's problem at the OSDAR conference. She organized a petition drive and encouraged members to write letters to the Legislature. The petitions were presented to Governor Taft. On January 29, 2001, the State Library of Ohio reopened in a newly renovated facility at 274 East First Avenue in Columbus. The library remained open except for the one month needed to complete the move. Peggy's initiative has shown that one person can make a difference.