Our Mission

The Friends of the Madison Public Library is a non-profit organization that supports the Central Library by fundraising for library programs and services. We operate a volunteer-run used bookstore in the Central Library and hold special book sales throughout the year. We are a community of library advocates and supporters, and each member of the Friends donates a $5 per year membership fee that allows us to continue funding the Library’s needs. 

​Since incorporating as a non-profit in February 1961, the Friends of the Madison Public Library has provided volunteer support, advocacy, and supplemental funds for collection development and special projects that the Library could otherwise not afford. Thanks to the proceeds of our bookstore and Friends’ membership dues, we have funded the following: a $100,000 pledge to the Central Library, the Library's Beyond the Page Program, the Library's Summer Reading Program, audiobook collection sponsorship, the New York Times and Wisconsin State Journal subscriptions, and the Naturalist-in-Residence program.

With your support, the Friends will continue to make a difference for the Madison Public Library community.

Learn more about the neighborhood Friends organizations of other Library locations >​