Wilton Library debuts new children's entrance with ceremony on Oct. 8

Wilton Library strives to inspire the imaginations of children and the new Children’s Library entrance is the first step in that journey. The new entrance will be marked with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, Oct. 1, at 5 p.m.  Members of the Shoff Foundation, Inc., who made the access way possible through their generous donation to the library, will be part of the festivities which include a reception that is open to the public.  Richard L. Mason, president of the foundation and Douglas T. Adams, vice president of the foundation and son of Wilton attorney Tom Adams and the late Virginia Adams, will be the official ribbon cutters at the celebration.

The work is the creation of Wilton Library’s volunteer art chairman, Ed MacEwen, and his daughter, Bonnie MacEwen Sailer and granddaughter, Jesse Sailer. The project took a little over 14 months from conceptual design to painstakingly detailed painting of each flower and leaf to final installation of the multi-leveled, three-dimensional artwork.

According to MacEwen, “Our inspiration was Henri Rousseau, who is one of my favorite artists.  Appropriately, I checked out a book about him from the library, and used his paintings to inform our work.”

The installation art encompasses a range of materials including aluminum from which the canopy of overhanging leaves was cut, more than 70 individual colors of acrylic paints, and wooden porch columns which were transformed by Jesse to make the tree trunks. 

Elaine Tai-Lauria, the executive director of Wilton Library remarked, “The jungle-themed entrance is the gateway that invites children to explore what’s inside opening up limitless opportunities for discovery thanks to the Shoff Foundation.”

The Shoff Foundation has been generous to the library for the past eight years.  In March, 2008, its grant improved accessibility of the library’s front entrance including a new ramped front walkway, a covered canopy to shield patrons from inclement weather, a mobility scooter, new outdoor signage and an improved drop box to return items.  More recently, the Shoff Foundation has funded the maker space now known as Innovation Station, which had its ribbon cutting during the Annual Meeting on Sunday, June 8, 2014.  Since that time the community has benefited from more than 1,000 hours of learning/training on 3D printers, die cutters, electronic sewing machines, soldering, and digital conversions of photos and videos. At that same annual meeting, the Shoff Foundation presented Elaine Tai-Lauria with the funds for the new Children’s Library entrance.

            The gifts were made in memory of Sheldon and Louise Shoff, former Wilton residents. The Shoffs lived in Wilton for almost 30 years from the ’50s to the ’80s in the house that is now the Wilton Volunteer Ambulance Corps, and always considered Wilton their hometown.  Rich Mason is the nephew of the late Louise Shoff. Doug Adams was raised in Wilton and graduated from Wilton High School.  Adams remarked, “I used the library a lot in those years.” He is senior director at General Growth Properties and lives in Fairfield.

The ribbon cutting and reception are open to the public.  For information, call 203-762-3950, ext. 213.