Ten years ago this April a group of five dedicated women headed up the first board of the Friends of Given Memorial Library.

Twelve others served on committees under them to get several fundraising projects off and running.

"The primary job of the Friends of Given Memorial Library and Tufts Archives is to raise funds to help meet the needs of this historic treasure in the Village of Pinehurst," says a spokesman.

The Friends took up funding programs of the library at risk due to budget restrictions, such as the Children's Summer Reading Program.

The Friends' board was first formed in April 1997, with Jenny Bell heading up a 16-person team as the first president of the board.

Some of the events planned that year were a medieval banquet, scheduling weekly speakers and activities for the Children's Summer Reading Program, scheduling the first "Meet the Author" event and the annual fall book sale. Since then, these events and others have been carried out by an equally dedicated series of all volunteer board and committee members.

The library and the archives were initially created with separate endowments, but now work together to maximize use of the funds.

The library and archives rely entirely on gifts of its patrons for all their program and maintenance needs. Though the list of patrons is over 4,000, fewer than 25 percent of the users make donations.

A noteworthy fact is that the Given Library is unique in the state of North Carolina for serving as a public library that is privately funded.

The Given Bookshop, in Olmsted Plaza, was the brainchild of another past president of Friends, Jean Funderburg. Funderburg still heads up the shop and its many volunteers that help maintain and staff it. The Given Bookshop is full of "gently used" books on every subject and has provided a significant amount of funds since its inception in 2004.

The 2007 board, headed up by Sue Hepner, will host this year's 10th anniversary schedule of events.

"Throughout 2007 we will be celebrating 10 years of the Friends and the many supportive events and programs, including the children's morning book reading at 10:30 a.m. every Saturday at the library," says the spokesman.

Details regarding plans for the upcoming summer reading program for children will be announced soon.

The annual literary luncheon will be at a new time this year. Scheduled for May 19, the luncheon will feature well-known mystery author, Jeffrey Deaver. This event is transitioning from being a fall event to spring this year, as this allows for a greater selection of authors, since most are on tours for their books in the fall.

The year will wrap up with the annual holiday concert Dec. 2 , featuring the Triangle Brass at 3 p.m. at the Carolina Hotel.

"Please join in and help celebrate our 10th anniversary this year by supporting these events," says the spokesman.

Those interested in finding out how to become a member of the Friends of the Given Memorial Library and Tufts Archives, may call 910-295-3642.