On Monday, October 7, 2024, I attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony. I’ve been to many ribbon cuttings over the years, and more often than not, I’m standing off to the side helping hold the ribbon. But this one felt different.

This time, I was not simply a Chamber member showing support for a local business, organization, or community event. This time, I was part of the organization being celebrated. I was holding the ribbon at a place that had, in many ways, become my second home.

After all the trials and tribulations of the 2023 controversy surrounding book challenges, it felt like the library was finally turning a corner. We had secured the Mellon grant, opened a public makerspace, and had just been named Library of the Year by the Virginia Library Association. Things were looking up.

Our library director, Erin Rooney, had the honor of cutting the ribbon. Her work on the original memory lab in 2022 helped attract the interest of the Carnegie Mellon Foundation. Although the controversy in 2023 created some concern during the grant process, the funding ultimately came through once things stabilized and the library’s future looked more secure.

During the mixer portion of the event, I congratulated Erin and told her she had accomplished something I had not been able to pull off on my own. A few years earlier, before I became a trustee, I had written up an explanation and proposal for a community makerspace. I knew I could not make it happen by myself, so I approached a few places and managed to generate some interest, but nothing that became actionable.

And yet, a few years later, there I was, standing inside an actual makerspace, wondering how on earth our director had managed to make it happen.

The name Studio 330 is a direct reference to the library’s address at 330 East Criser Road. A few other names had been considered, including “The Forge.” Once the library settled on Studio 330, it sounded stronger than some of the earlier options, and over time, it grew on me.

Royal Examiner: Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony Marks Exciting Opening of Samuels Library’s Studio 330 October 8, 2024