Local Architecture Firm Pledges $35,000 to New Salisbury Library Project

Wicomico County, MD - A well-known Salisbury architecture firm is putting its money where its heart is. Davis, Bowen & Friedel, Inc. has pledged $35,000 to the Friends Foundation of Wicomico Public Library. The donation will go toward the future Paul S. Sarbanes Library on Schumaker Pond.

The gift means a lot more than just a check. Davis, Bowen & Friedel - often known as DBF - originally designed the building that is now being converted into the new library. They are also the firm overseeing its renovation and redesign today.

Construction on the project began in January. DBF architects have been on the job since the start, watching the building transform from what it was into something the whole county can use.

Seth Hershberger, Executive Director of Wicomico Public Library, did not hold back when talking about what this donation means.

"We're just incredibly grateful to DBF for this gift," Hershberger said. "They know this building better than anyone. They designed it originally, and now they're helping us bring it into its next life as a library."

When it opens, the Sarbanes Library on Schumaker Pond is planned to be a space for reading, learning, technology access, and community programs. The renovation is designed to expand what the library system can offer while keeping the character of the original building intact.

Hershberger said the community focus is what keeps coming back to him when he thinks about this donation.

"The thing I keep coming back to is that this is a gift for the whole community," he said. "DBF has been part of the project from the beginning, not just as architects, but as real partners in helping us imagine what this building can become. We're very thankful for that."

The Friends Foundation of Wicomico Public Library is the organization receiving the pledge. The foundation supports programs and projects that strengthen library services across the county. DBF's $35,000 commitment will help keep the Sarbanes Library project moving forward as construction continues.

It is not every day that the firm that built a building gets to help give it a second life. For DBF and the library system, this project is personal - and the community will be the one to benefit when the doors finally open.