VALLEY CITY, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – The Bjerke brothers of Travis, Tyler and Trevor donated $50,000 to the Valley City Barnes County Public Library.
Travis Bjerke said our mother Diane dedicated to learning, emphasized this early by reading children’s books to us. He said what better way to honor our parents who instilled education as the bedrock for us than to donate $50,000 for two remodeling projects and their ongoing children’s library programming.
Assistant Director Melissa Lloyd was in shock when the Bjerke’s announced the size of their donation.
She said the first project will be the conversion of a closet into a reading nook and the conversion of a storage room into a children’s playroom.
Library Board President Hilde van Gijssel said this is the largest monetary donation given to the library. She said we cannot thank the Bjerke Family enough for this gift.
Diane Bjerke served as the director of the Library from 1975-1977 and then, stepped back to raise her three sons. She also served as a board member and volunteer. She said the library is a special place.
The $50,000 donation was announced during Jack and Diane Bjerke’s 50th wedding anniversary earlier this month.
The full interview is available below.
The following was written by one of the Bjerke brothers honoring their parents during their 50th Wedding Anniversary.
“Jack and Diane (Pedersen) Bjerke were married on August 12, 1972, at Our Savior’s Lutheran church in Valley City, ND. On Friday, August 12th they celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary. To celebrate and honor this landmark achievement their three sons and wives Travis (Nichole) Bjerke of Alexandria, MN, Tyler (Becky) Bjerke of Fargo, and Trevor (Jenny) Bjerke of Mapleton, ND planned an event fitting for this milestone. The invite-only event was limited to 160 attendees but ended up with just under 200. “We unfortunately had to stay within room capacity and just simply were not able to accommodate last minute RSVP’s,” said Tyler Bjerke. Their story was told through music most fitting since the iconic song from John Mellencamp. The band, Dancing Dream, was flown in from New York for the event. Dancing Dream is one of a handful of touring ABBA tribute bands. With the decorations (decked out in black and gold), the meal planned, as well as entertainment, the question turned as to what gift to give their parents.
The three boys came up with an idea of a donation in their honor in lieu of a gift to them. “They always say they want for nothing and need nothing, so we decided to listen to them,” said Travis Bjerke. “Our mother was always dedicated to learning. She emphasized this early on in our lives as she always read us books as children, encouraged us to do our best in high school, and then mandated we attend college. Our mother served as the director of the Valley City Barnes County Public Library from 1975-1977 and then, after having born us three, stepped back and became a board member and volunteer. We have so many fond memories of growing up at the library.” said Tyler Bjerke. “Visiting our mom at the library was always fun. They had viewfinders, story time, and bean bags to lounge in.” said Trevor Bjerke. “Mom could have been a career student as she loves to read and learn.” said Tyler Bjerke. What better way to honor our parents who instilled education as the bedrock for us than to donate $50,000 for their commitment of marriage for 50 years. Our donation to the Valley City Barnes County Public Library will be earmarked for two remodel projects along with ongoing children’s programming.
The first project will be the conversion of a closet into a reading nook as well as conversion of a storage room into a children’s playroom. Children’s programming will include author book signings, summer reading programs, etc. Our vision is to make the library cool and relevant for the next generation.
Assistant Director Melissa Lloyd and Board President Hilde van Gijssel attended the event to receive this generous donation. “We cannot thank the Bjerke Family enough for this gift. It will make a huge difference for the library and we cannot wait to work with Diane and her family to see their vision come to fruition” said Melissa Lloyd and Hilde van Gijssel.”
