The Irene Ingle Public Library is experiencing a surge in activity, and Librarian Sarah Scambler intends to maintain that momentum with new staff and a series of grant awards.

The increase in community programming follows the hire of Chana Garrett as a programming librarian. Garrett joined the staff more than two months ago through a two-year federal grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), a project completed in cooperation with the Wrangell Cooperative Association.

Scambler described the acquisition of the grant and the hiring of Garrett as “a perfect storm of everything coming together.”

In total, she said the library has received five different grants for the current fiscal year, totaling $197,000.

During the March 24 assembly meeting, Borough Manager Mason Villarma recognized Scambler for securing two particular grants. A $20,000 award from the 2026 Camp Initiative will fund youth programming and day camps, while a $10,000 grant from the American Library Association will pay for automatic door openers.

Villarma praised the library’s leadership: “These awards are a direct reflection of Director Scambler’s leadership and dedication to expanding services, improving accessibility and enhancing the role of the library as a community hub.”

Library staff plan to evaluate the success of these new programs in May to determine which initiatives have made the most significant impact.

“Hopefully we can keep things going, because we’re already seeing a big increase in activity, and a lot of that is because of Chana,” she said. “I just can’t imagine us moving backward from what we’ve been able to accomplish in a short time.

With Garrett managing daily programs, Scambler is now able to address other needs, such as the library’s Alaska section. This collection contains rare items that require careful sorting and organization.

“Our Alaska section has a lot of things with some rare items that really need to be sorted and organized,” she said. “Some of it probably needs to be preserved under glass. And now we’re in a position to be able to focus on getting that done.”

The primary funding for these changes came from the IMLS Native American Library Services Enhancement Grant program. This specific grant aims to strengthen the library's position as an educational and cultural anchor for the community.

Scambler credited the WCA for its vital role in securing the funding. “We couldn’t have done this without the WCA.”

Scambler praised Garrett’s impact on the team, noting that she has implemented many new ideas and taken over social media tasks.

This year’s “Kids Club” program has grown to more than 50 participants each week. And she was surprised by the number of participants in the adult reading program that just ended with more than 90 participants in total.

“We took our time and hired the right person. She’s the perfect addition,” Scambler said. “She’s also taken over the social media presence for the library, which has really helped me and (assistant librarian) Kaitlin (Wilson) have a chance to focus on other things.”

One of those projects is “Remembering Wrangell,” an oral history initiative developed by Wilson.

The project invites residents to share their stories of the community to ensure history is recorded. “Unfortunately, with an elderly population, we lose a little bit more of our history every year,” Wilson said. “This is an opportunity to keep that history alive.”

That program is scheduled to have its first session at the library on Saturday, April 18, at 2 p.m., with plans to record and archive the stories that are shared.

“We may even set it up with Zoom, so more people can attend online,” Scambler said. “It’s really exciting. We’re really looking forward to it.”