Joining together to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the re-opening of the Hopkinton Public Library after a $11.7 million expansion, restoration and renovation, members of the library staff along with the Library Board of Trustees, the Friends of the Hopkinton Public Library, and the Hopkinton Public Library Foundation (HPLF) hosted several events Oct. 27.

   In addition to library tours and cider and doughnuts, the highlight of the day was the unveiling and dedication of the plaque recognizing donors to the “1000 Homes for Hopkinton Library” fundraising campaign.

   According to Laura Barry, a member of the HPLF Board of Directors, hundreds of Hopkinton families and local businesses joined the campaign by giving or pledging $1,000 or more to the library project. In addition, many also claimed a naming opportunity which allowed individuals, families and businesses to affix their name to a plaque to be mounted in the library.

   “Through both of these programs, the Hopkinton community gave nearly $700,000 of the $1 million raised for the library renovation and expansion,” said Barry.

   Prior to the unveiling and dedication of the plaque, Barry was joined by fellow HPLF member Scott Richardson and donor Victor Diune, former Library Trustee Russ Ellsworth, and Selectman John Coutinho to raise a glass to toast the project’s success and to talk about their connection to the library.

   Ellsworth spoke of his 63-year association with the library in a variety of roles, but joked that he started and finished his career as an unpaid volunteer. He and his siblings claimed a naming opportunity for his late mother, Jeanette Ellsworth, a former library director. He also praised the library staff and said, “They are my favorites. I love working with them.”

   “This place gets better and better,” said Coutinho. He also thanked former Selectmen Chair Ben Palleiko who was present at the celebration for helping to lead and support the library project to its completion.

   In her closing remarks before the unveiling of the plaque, Barry provided some numbers about library traffic and said that a 30-percent increase was predicted, but had been surpassed.

   “Hopkinton has blown those numbers away,” said Barry. “The library really is community center.”