The storytime room in the renovated Gainesville library will be named the Sandra Dunagan Deal Storytime Room in honor of former Georgia first lady Sandra Deal.
During her time as first lady, Deal, a retired school teacher, made promoting literacy a top priority. According to a news release from the Hall County Library System, her lifelong passion for literacy has been demonstrated in her strong support for Georgia’s libraries. During her husband's time as governor, Deal made “Read Across Georgia” one of her top initiatives, visiting each school district and county in the state, reading aloud to at least one group of children. She also visited many public library systems, including the Hall County Library, to read to storytime attendees. In Mrs. Deal’s words, “We, as parents, teachers, and mentors, must take it upon ourselves to ensure that our students are good readers.”
Hall County Library Board Chairman Mark Pettitt says “Mrs. Deal has dedicated much of her life to improving literacy and educating the children of our state. Dedicating the new storytime room in her honor is the least we could do to recognize her work in our community. During her time as First Lady, Mrs. Deal visited and read to more than 1,000 schools. I am thankful for the standard and example set by Mrs. Deal; we are all better because of her commitment to reading and public libraries.”
The renovated and expanded library is expected to open next summer.
http://accesswdun.com/article/2019/6/804072/renovated-gainesville-librarys-storytime-room-will-honor-former-georgia-first-lady-sandra-deal